


I Am Home Now

by D4rkallmighty



Category: Mass Effect, Mass Effect: Andromeda, Titanfall
Genre: "The banging is pretty good"~ Micheal Gamble, Childbirth, Cute baby awws, Established Relationship, F/F, Grandpa Drack, Interspecies sex (duh), Killing Kett and making love, Lesbian Sex, Pregnancy, Sara just wants some alone time with her girlfriend, Turian mating, Vetra is an adorable bird girlfriend, fluffy fluffs, hybrid children
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-03-25
Updated: 2018-09-10
Packaged: 2018-10-10 12:28:15
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 17
Words: 103,922
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10437750
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/D4rkallmighty/pseuds/D4rkallmighty
Summary: A tale of two souls cast adrift on the tides of chaos and danger that is Andromeda. They find each other and a spark is formed. Their love grows through challenges and obstacles placed in their way.ORHOW I WISH ANDROMEDA ENDED WITH THEM MAKING CUTE BABIES AND KILLING KETT!!! OMG THEY ARE SO ADORABLY CUTE AND DORKY!!!





	1. Celebrations

**Author's Note:**

> All right lesbihonest here, when they said Vetra could be romanced by a female Ryder, who didn't immediately jump up and squeal with delight? Just me? No way. Come on, put your hands up. Don't be shy.

** I Am Home Now **

** Sara POV **

The Archon is dead. His armies in disarray. Ark Hyperion rests at its final place on Meridian. Our 600 year journey has come to an end. We are home.

“Hey Sara, do you think I can…” Scott says as he sits up in bed. We are in dad’s old room aboard the ark. Fixing him with a withering glare, I stand up and cross my arms, daring him to defy me.

“Lexi said no strenuous activity. You are staying here. Like it or not.” At the sound of protest, I glance back at him over my shoulder. “I'll save you some cake. Promise.”

“Promise?” His blue eyes widen with excitement. My Brother has always been a sucker for sweet confections.

“I Promise. When have I ever lied to you?”

He rolls his eyes and scoffs. “Pssh. What about the time our sunfish died? You said dad took him to study when actually you just flushed him down the toilet.”

“You were six! You weren't ready to confront death.”

“So were you!” He crosses his arms and narrows his eyes at me.

“Argh! I don't have time to argue with you. Get some rest. I'll be back later.”

“Like I believe that. You'll be too busy with your Girlfriend.” His face twisting into a grin.

My cheeks heat up instantly at the thought of Vetra. Faking indignation, I gasp dramatically.

“Scott Ryder. You did not just say that.”

“Hey it's the truth, I've seen how you look at her. But seriously though, I'm happy for you. Glad you found someone nice. Plus, it's pretty cool. Not everyday you find out your sister is in a lesbian Human-Turian relationship.”

“Uh huh. So when you gonna ask Cora out? I know you have a crush on her.” I relish in his discomfort as his smirk fades and is quickly replaced by a blush.

“As soon as Doc Lexi releases me. I'll ask her. For sure.”

I chuckle as I leave the room.

“Rest well specialist.”

“Have fun Pathfinder.”

I make my way through the crew. Talking to each of them. We have just done the impossible and secured a foothold in the unknown. However, as more and more people flocked to talk to talk to their Pathfinder, I found my responses getting more and more clipped. My patience was wearing thin. I just wanted to talk to my Girlfriend. I could see her in the distance. Not many Turians on the Hyperion. I could tell that her Sister was standing next to her but they had their backs to me.

“All right, back off. Ryder is getting tired of you pyjacks. Let her see her Turian.” Our gruff Krogan Uncle nearly knocks a Salarian off his feet as he gently tries to shoo the crowd away.

My smile freezes and my heart pounds in my chest. “Dammit Drack! No one is suppose to know. You'll give Taan an aneurysm!” I hiss through gritted teeth.

The cacophony of voices vying for my attention lulls for a moment before its starts again, several magnitudes louder.

“Shit. Okay okay. I'll admit it. I have been in a relationship with Vetra Nyx for a few months now.”

Microphones and omnitools are shoved into my face almost immediately.

“What does this mean for you? Do you think this will affect interspecies relations? How did it start?” I filtered out the questions after a few seconds. Being only five foot six, I had to crane my neck around the taller crowd of humans and aliens in front of me just for a glimpse of my Girlfriend.  _Okay good. She's still there._

Pushing through the crowd, I make my way to the pair of Turians. Once I'm close enough, I wrap my arms around her waist from behind and bury my face in her shoulder, acutely aware of how intimate it is to be touching a Turian’s waist.

“Do you think she'll like it?” Vetra asks her Sister.

“Only one way to find out.” Sid replies, smiling at me.

“Hey you.” Her dual toned voice floats down to my ears. Turning around in my arms, she looks down at me and I am immediately struck by her features. She is not wearing her customary visor and has new facial markings on her previously bare face. Black and gold lines now run down her mandibles and end at her mouth plates. A red trident like design is etched onto her left cheek.

“Vetra, your markings. They're beautiful.”

Her mandibles widen in a Turian blush as she lowers her mouth to mine. “I got them for you. The black and gold to represent your armor. Your unbending spirit that saw us through this whole mess, and the red trident to represent the Tempest. My…new home.”

She presses her lips to mine and I melt into her embrace. Luckily she is strong enough to catch me as I swoon slightly and my legs nearly give out on me.

“Thank you for giving me a home Sara Ryder. I love you.”

I kiss her again, not caring about the countless flashes of cameras like a strobe light on our moment. “I love you too Vetra Nyx. Now, how about we get out of here?”

Her mandibles curl up into a devious smile. “Thought you'd never ask.” She eagerly scoops me up in her arms and runs for the airlock.

I slam the override as she sets me down. The doors close with a hiss. I can hear Kallo protesting over the Comm but I tune him out.

“SAM, you can fly the tempest right?”

“Yes Pathfinder, I am able to enact full automated piloting controls in the event of complete crew incacipitation. Would you like me to enable those protocols?”

“Yes SAM, make sure we aren’t disturbed for a few hours.”

I barely have time to finish my sentence before I am slammed against the wall, with Vetra’s lips pressing aggressively into mine. I can't help but let out a whimper. This aggressive, possessive side of her makes me incredibly turned on. I feel my core pulse with need as liquid warmth pools low in my belly.

She nips teasingly at my neck before we stumble down the hallway, drunk on kisses and panting for oxygen.

I feel the rounded metal edge of the research table digging into the back of my knees as she continues to tongue my mouth. Hoisting me up onto the table, I let out a wonton moan as her long fingers brush softly over my clothed entrance, my hips unconsciously yearning for more contact.

“My my, so needy. Sara you poor little thing.” Her voice sets my nerves on fire.

I throw my head back in pleasure as she pulls one of my nipples between her talons. Even through my bra and clothes, her effect on me is immediate. My breathing grows ragged as wetness seeps from between my legs.  _At the rate things are going, I'm going to have to fabricate a whole new set of clothes._

I wrap my legs around her waist and pull her flush to myself. The crotchpiece of her armor presses directly onto my clit and I nearly come undone. Her hips buck once and I cry out. The pressure within me releasing. I see stars as I tremble in her strong arms. Each time I twitch, my leg pull her against me and her armor slams into my clit, setting off another chain of aftershocks.

She hums into my ear as her mandibles brush my cheek. “You came already. You must have been really looking forward to this.”

“You have no idea.” I whisper, voice husky and full of need as I recapture her in a breathless kiss.

She pulls off my scarf and I unbuckle the front clasps of her amour. As we make our way down past the Nomad and down the lower corridor, we leave a trail of clothes and pieces of armor in our wake.

It feels like I have been kissing her for an eternity before we finally make it to my quarters and fall into bed. Naked with hands roaming freely.

** Vetra POV **

“SAM, lock the doors and enter privacy mode.” Sara says off handedly between kisses.

“Yes pathfinder. Enjoy your evening.” The lights dim automatically and soft sensual music begins to play. Evidently SAM want this to go well for her.

Ryder is beautiful beneath me. Her pale skin dotted with bite marks and small bruises from my nipping. Her nipples stand stiff like monoliths atop her breasts. I cannot help but admire the differences between us. Where I am all hard bone and muscle, she is soft and supple. Hiding great strength below her fragile exterior.

In that moment, I freeze. I don't know how to pleasure her. I begin by rubbing her armpits but only succeed in pulling a fit of giggles from her. Curious, I trail my talons down her sides and poke her supple flesh. She shrieks in laughter and yells out.

“Stop! Stop! You're gonna make me pee!”

Alarmed by her response, I stop my motions and sit there. I am a little afraid that I might have hurt her.

Looking at my sad expression, she giggles again and pulls me in for a kiss.

“I should have expected this. Vetra you need to remember, I'm not Turian. Touching me there is not pleasurable. It's ah ticklish.  _Very_ ticklish.”

“Then show me where.” I say. Drawing out my sub-harmonics and watching her shudder and goose flesh crawl up her arms.

She takes my three fingers in her five and brings them lower until our hands cup her wet heat. She guides my finger over a small bump at the top of her opening. I can see how ready she is for me. Her lips are petaled open and I can see her wetness gleaming on her pink inner folds.

“This is my clitoris. It's an extremely sensitive part of me. If you just…” she moans as she brushes my talon over herself. “If you rub it or flick it, it feels  _real_  good.”

I begin experimentally at first. I didn't want to accidentally hurt her. She did say it was an extremely sensitive part of her. Slowly drawing one talon over her hard bump, I smile as she grips at the sheets below us. Her knuckles turning white.

Taking her between my thumb and index finger, I gently roll her clit and she responds immediately. Her hips lift off the bed as she lets out a long whine.

“Vetra. I- I need you… inside. Please. I… I need.” Her eyes squeeze close in pleasure and her mouth is open, panting for air.

I look at her worriedly, my façade of confidence instantly shattered. I've never done  _this_ with another woman before, let alone a  _human_.

She must see my indecision because she spreads her legs wider, giving me unrestricted access to her opening. “Your tongue, your fingers, anything! Please I need to come, my clit is not enough.” Her opening is weeping her essence now, her lips are puffy and her clit is standing proudly free from its hood. I send her another unsure glance before lowering my nostrils to her wet heat and bask in the scent. The smell of her arousal is intoxicating. Sweet yet heavy and vibrant.

“Spirits, even you smell like you.” My gaze flicks back up to capture hers. She is watching me intently with lust filled eyes.

“Sweet, heavy and vibrant?” She asks, arching a brow.

“Did I say that out loud?” She nods at me and smiles a brilliant smile that makes my poor heart stop beating for about three seconds.

I shift my attention back below. I cannot wait to taste her. To get to know Ryder in the most intimate way. I pull her thighs closer to me and bury my nose in her clit. Slipping my tongue into her, I tentatively tongue the tight ring of muscle that forms her opening. I enjoy the small gush of liquid she rewards me with. Her flavour coating my tongue and filling my senses. I slide deeper in and she tilts her head back in a moan. Her hand rests on the back of my head as her thighs tighten around my head. I look up and see her, flushed and panting hard. Her breasts bobbing up and down deliciously with each hard breath.

I slowly explore her with my tongue. I thank the spirits for giving Turians an exceptionally long and prehensile tongue. The way she gasps as I fully extend my tongue within her is the single sexiest sound I have ever heard. Her walls are fluttering around my tongue, trying to pull me deeper into her. I drive my tongue as deep as I can into her and reach a hard resistance.

“Oh god!” She jumps up in bed, her legs wrapping around my neck. “My cervix, you're licking my cervix. Oh my god.” She flops bonelessly back down on the bed as her walls clench tightly around my tongue.  _She just had a mini orgasm._  I smile against her flesh as I continue to penetrate her, driving into her relentlessly.

Her cries of my name slowly turn to babbling, incoherent moans as she tightens around me a final time. I swear she cuts off blood flow to my tongue as she comes, flooding my mouth with her essence.

I still within her, soaking in her release. Looking up at her, she is watching me with half lidded eyes. I withdraw from her and capture her lips with mine. She whimpers as she tastes herself on my tongue.

“Thank you Vetra, I needed that. Now it's your turn.”

She gently rolls us over and settles between my legs.

“I…um. I have no idea how to do this as well. Can you show me?”

Cupping her cheek in my hand, my mandibles can't help but lift into a cheeky grin as I say. “I'm not telling pathfinder, you're always jumping into the unknown without a second look. Figure it out yourself. A hint, I don't have a clitoris.”

“Challenge accepted.” She says proudly as she runs her fingers down my sides. I cannot help but shudder at the feeling. No one has ever touched me as intimately as she has. I let out a low keen as her multitude of fingers massage my sensitive flesh. Never have I been so glad for her many soft fingers. If she's already doing so well here, what will happen when she goes higher.

“Spirits.” I gasp as her hands cup my armpits.

“Aha. So I was right. I should have followed what you did to me first.” Her face is pure concentration as she tries to figure out which movements I like. I cannot help but purr a little at her intense gaze. I feel like a specimen being studied by her and my plates spread at the thought.  _I am hers._  The surge of belonging causes me to buck on her thigh. Her soft, pale skin becoming coated with my juices.

She cups the back of my head and pulls me in for another sloppy wet kiss. My insides throb with need as her fingers curl into the soft unprotected skin beneath my crest. My purring increases embarrassingly as she expertly manipulates my flesh beneath her fingers.

She looks down between our legs and sees that I have spread. Immediately, her attention is focused on my opening.

“It's just a hole.” She says, her brow scrunched in a look of pure intrigue.

“Yes. It is merely an opening into my body. But I am very sensitive inside. When a male ties with me, it is extremely pleasurable.”

She wastes no time and thrusts forward with her fingers, shit eating grin on her face. I let out a high pitched trill as she rubs and probes my insides. My mind goes hazy with pleasure as she explores me. My Sara simply cannot resist the unknown, always diving head first without a second thought.

When she rubs against the rough patch of tissue ringing the inside of my entrance, I cannot hold back any longer and cry out in ecstasy as I writhe on her fingers. I jerk into her arms and shudder uncontrollably as my orgasm takes me. She refuses to leave me, her fingers still pumping steadily into me.

“Ryder, stop. Turian females can only orgasm once per session. It is the males that can have multiple releases.”

I relax into her touch, already feeling my plates beginning to pull together.

As she withdraws from me, I pull her close. Our legs intertwine as we catch our breaths. The room smells of delicious sex and sweat. She buries her face in my cowl as I hum softly.

I nuzzle the back of her head affectionally. “Sara, I love you more than words can say but you really must stop doing this.”

Her head pops up from my cowl as she focuses her ice blue eyes on mine. “Do what?” She chuckles softly as she presses kisses to my mandible.

“Stop taking unnecessary risks. You are the brightest, most headstrong person I have ever met, but as they say, the brighter the candle burns, the shorter it will last.” I look away as I continue. “I cannot lose you Sara.”

“Hey,” she cups my cheek and pulls my face to hers. “I'm not going anywhere. The Archon is dead remember? The Kett are lost without a leader and we have thriving outposts now. I don't think anyone is gonna fault the Pathfinder for taking a break. We have our whole lives to live out with each other. I have found my home, and it is here. With you.”

Her fingers find their way between my plates again and slip into my wet heat. I gasp at the sensation because I am not supposed to be able to continue, but her steady pumping has my insides clenching and fluttering around her.

“Another thing I'm good for, pulling off the impossible.” She nips at my neck as she drives me over the edge again.

“Navigation system override. Tempest is returning to Nexus hub. I suggest you get dressed Pathfinder.” SAM suddenly announces.

“Damn it Kallo! Should have known our time wouldn't last. They should know what we're doing. If they dare to open the door… SAM, try to delay as long as possible.” She removes her fingers from me to type some commands into her omnitool before roughly replacing them within me.

I gulp with a hint of fear as her expression suddenly turns predatory and she launches at me again with renewed vigour.

 


	2. New Arrangements

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Second chapter. Just moving things along. Nothing to see here. *Jump Jets away*

** Chapter 2 **

** New Arrangements **

** Sara POV **

“Fuck!” I shout to the heavens as she fills me, her tongue penetrating my innermost vault. Lungs burning for air as my screams bounce off the walls, legs clamping tight around her head as my orgasm takes me. I claw at her plates with wild abandon as I start sobbing uncontrollably.

Her rough tongue gently eases out from within me and I am left clenching around nothing, weak jets of fluid gush out from my opening. I look down and see her licking my release off her lips. The bottom half of her face is drenched in my essence. My cheeks burn and I quickly close my legs and look away, focusing on the blueshift outside my window.

A talon hooks under my chin and my gaze is pulled back to meet hers. My blush intensifies as I see myself dripping from her mandibles.

“Sara please don’t be embarrassed. I love how you come for me. I see it as a treat from you. I count myself extremely lucky that the spirits blessed you with this ability.”

“What? To squirt uncontrollably and ruin the bedsheets?” I sit up cross-legged as I see the rapidly growing stain beneath me.

She pulls me into her arms and I instantly melt into her. Her rough hide brushes over my oversensitive nipples, sending a shudder through me. Her mandibles twitch in amusement when I let out a soft moan. We spent the last three hours making love to each other and yet she is able to pull such reactions from me. She starts to vibrate softly when I run my fingers over the thick cords of muscle on her neck.

With my mind numb and fuzzy from the countless orgasms she has driven me to for the past few hours, I barely register her fingers moving lower and tracing my entrance. I jerk in her hold as she enters my pussy again.

“Vetra please, no more. I can’t take anymore. Just hold me.”

Her fingers withdraw and settle over me instead. I sigh in contentment as her hand stays cupped between my legs. She rumbles softly as her other hand traces my side. I close my eyes and prepare to fall into the dark embrace of sleep, next to the woman I love.

“Sara, can I tell you something?” she suddenly says, pulling me back from the brink of slumber.

“Mhfanything.” I mumble as I nuzzle deeper into her cowl. She smells metallic, sweet and musky all at the same time. A smell that is both comforting and arousing. Except I am so thoroughly satisfied that the arousing part doesn’t even register to my brain.

“I… may have been lying just now when I said that female Turians only orgasm once.”

All thoughts of sleep vanish from my brain as I jolt up and grip her breastplates.

“I _knew_ it! I may not have any knowledge about Turians, but the way you responded to me was pretty clear.”

“You’re not gonna ask me why I told you that?” She says, her voice trembling slightly.

“Alright, why?”

Now it’s her turn to look bashful as her gaze flicks from me to the far wall. “I was shy.”

I gasp dramatically, leaning back with my hand over my mouth. “Vetra Nyx is shy? Oh my god!”

She swats lightly at me as her mandibles pull apart in the Turian version of a deep blush.

“Sush you. I just… I’ve never done this before.” She tries to pull away but I trap her between my legs. With her on her back and me straddling her, she has nowhere to go. Eventually, she relents and stops struggling against me.

“I’ve never done this with another woman before.” She looks away as she mumbles out “Especially a human woman.”

Sighing against the valley of my breasts, her sub-vocals quivering. “I’ve read how human females can orgasm multiple times and I was afraid. Sara, one thing you should know about me is that I am not attracted to females. I’m just attracted to well…you. I was scared that I wouldn’t be able to keep up or even get aroused by you so I lied just in case I couldn’t reach orgasm.”

“Vetra, Vetra, Vetra." I say, shaking my head.

"You really thought I would be angry with you? I love you. More than words can say. Vetra don’t you get it? I’m _in love_ with you. Even if I could not get you aroused, I’m happy to spend the rest of my days beside you. Sex or no sex. It’s alright. I forgive you. Just promise to always tell me the truth next time okay?” I look up at her deep green eyes and am overcome with my love for this woman. I press my lips to hers for the thousandth time that hour. Only this time, I pour every ounce of love I have into it.

She lets out a needy whimper as her plates spread below me. I can feel her heat radiating against me as I begin to move against her. I put to use all the things I have learnt over the past few hours, using my thighs to grind into her exposed hips and my ankles to lightly bump her spurs. Her carapace seems to heat up under my touch as wetness seeps from between her plates.

I shamelessly rub my clit over the rough skin on her navel, coating the mottled flesh with my shine. We moan in unison as the nexus comes into view on the holo-screen.

A rush of heat bursts through me as the added pressure to finish before we come into view of the docking bay spurs me on. I grind against her harder as I drive us towards our orgasm. I mentally kick myself for not enabling the privacy filter before we started our activities. It would certainly be a scandal aboard the nexus if the Pathfinder was caught doing…certain things.

“Sara…” Her voice rises into a shrill whine as she begins to buck against me, causing me to slip off her hips. Our lower lips crash together in an intimate kiss of heat and wetness. I quickly shift my leg so that our lower halves fit together. I push hard against her as I scrape my fingernails down her hips. She cries out in ecstasy as she comes. The sight of her coming unravelled under my touch pushes me over the brink and I join her in bliss. My fluids come gushing out of me and I swear some of it flows into her as we are fit so snugly together.

I nearly jump out of my skin as I realise that final docking procedures have been completed. I separate myself from her and slam a hand over the privacy controls.

“SAM, next time please enable the filter and sound dampening whenever Vetra and I get… intimate.”

“Of course Pathfinder. The main airlock doors have been overridden. The crew is coming aboard. I suggest you fabricate new uniforms immediately.”

“Fuck.” I have to take a few deep breaths to calm my panic induced staccato of a heart rate as I collect my underwear. Slipping into my panties, I groan in discomfort as I realise that my earlier efforts have proven disastrous. Vetra’s rough skin has caused severe chafing on my thighs and they’re red and raw, not to mention itchy as hell.

“You might want to take a shower first. You know, wash off all my fluids? I _am_ dextro. You probably have an allergy.” My girlfriend reclines in our bed, stomach glistening and skin flushed a beautiful cobalt. Wait, _our_ bed? I grin internally as I find myself liking the idea more and more.

“Sara.”

“Hmmm?” I look back at my beautiful girlfriend. “Shower. _Now._ ”

“All right, all right. As long as you join me.” my heart leaps for joy as she glides off the bed and stands behind me, her arms wrapping around me. Her chest begins to rumble with a deep seated purr.

“At least _I_ don’t have to be told twice.” Her voice has a teasing lilt as she carries me towards the bathroom, slipping a talon under the waistband of my underwear and tearing the fabric off my body.

When I try to protest, she silences me with a kiss. “You have to fabricate a new uniform anyway.”

Sadly, a quick shower and a few minutes of incessant foot tapping later, we finally leave my room showered and dressed in freshly fabricated clothes. I cringe internally as I realise that our trail of clothes and armor is no longer littering the Tempest but sitting in two neat piles in front of the console.

I gulp uncomfortably as Jaal stretches my bra between his fingers.

“Uh Jaal, could you put that down?”

He makes a curious sound and refuses to do so. “I would like to take it apart and examine it. What is it? Is it a weapon of some sort? Very efficient. Capable of launching two projectiles at once.”

“It’s ah, called a bra. It’s part of my clothing.” I notice Liam, Cora and Suvi trying very hard not to burst out laughing. Lexi simply stands there with an amused expression. Peebee nearly cracks but luckily Drack slaps a hand over her mouth just in time.

“What is its purpose?” Jaal asks, he is studying the material closely. He brings it close to his nose and sniffs it.

“It… provides support for my breasts.” I say quickly. “And please don’t smell it Jaal, it goes over a private part of my body.”

His eyes somehow widen even further, his normally huge eyes now shining with interest.

“I’m sorry, your word didn’t translate. What are _breeatss?”_

“Breasts Jaal. They’re…these.” I cup my chest and show him how they bounce.

At this, the rest of the crew cannot hold out any longer and they all burst out laughing. I lower my eyes in humiliation as my cheeks turn scarlet.

“Ah I see. Do all milky way females wear them?”

“Only those with breasts. Vetra doesn’t need to because she doesn’t have them.” I mumble under my breath, too humiliated to look at my crew. Strong warm arms wrap themselves around my waist as Vetra pulls me close to her. Her comfortable warmth radiates through the human shirt she has somehow stretched over her carapace and diffuses into my back.

“Shouldn’t have left it lying around then Ryder.” She whispers into my ear and I cringe even more.

"Well I was a little busy at the time. Didn't realise Kallo had an override." I whisper back.

“So… when we gonna have the movie night? I’m eager to cash in my unlimited refill coupon at Vortex.” Liam says, rubbing his hands together in delight.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next chapter. Jaal or Suvi? You decide. Won't tell you what for, just have to trust me. Yeees trust me... HA HA HAHAHHAAH. * Evil laughter*  
> *Falls back in chair*


	3. Movie Night

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> More?
> 
> More.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yeah. This happened.

** Movie Night **

** Sara POV **

“This is booring! Skip to the explosion!” Peebee whines as she lifts a flask to her lips. Thankfully, all flasks have spill proof mouthpieces because the Asari is currently sitting upside down, her toes wiggling in the air.

“Yes, skip to the good part.” Jaal says. For some reason, the Angaran refused to sit down during the whole movie. Claiming that following the actors as they moved across the screen improved the experience when it became clear that the electro-dermal stimulation tech would only work with Angaran physiology.

“Skipping to the good part. Going once, going twice! Okay… skipping to the good part.” Liam presses buttons on the remote and the vid skips forward. However, I only barely notice it as I feel a pair of talons wiggling under my shirt.

My breath hitches and the talons grow bolder. Slipping under my bra, they pinch a nipple. The slight pain and the fear of getting caught by all my friends causes me to get wet almost immediately. I subtly shift my legs so that my pussy is not directly in contact with Liam’s couch. It would be even more embarrassing if I left a stain on it.

I nearly choke on my tongue when a second set of talons scratches over the skin above my waistband. _Vetra please not here._ I say with my eyes as I catch sight of hers. Her eyes have a predatory glint in them. I’m not sure if it’s because her pupils have narrowed to slits or because of the reflection of the light from the vid. Either way, my panties become uncomfortably slick with arousal.

 _Shit._ My hips buck when a long talon finally comes to rest over my clit. Small circular movements are all I need. The sharpness of her talon and the rough pinching of my nipple has me nearly thrashing on the couch. I clench my jaw so hard to keep from crying out that I start to develop a cramp.

“Hey, do you smell something funny? I smell something funny.” Drack grumbles as he sniffs the air.

“You're a little far behind Drack. We all know what that smell is.” Cora says as she mimes a rude sign with her tongue and two fingers.

I cannot hold back my reaction to Vetra any longer and let out a loud gasp. Luckily, Cora thinks that my reaction was one of offence. She continues to tease me, totally ignorant of reality. Her words turn to muffled noise to me when that single talon presses inside.

The pressure to keep quiet and the fear that we could get caught at any moment eggs me higher and higher. I feel the familiar warmlth pooling in my core, my insides aching and tightening around the intruding talon. My body doing its damnedest to pull her deeper in. Teetering on the brink, My consciousness starts to disconnect from the world. Just as the vid finishes.

“Come on! You can do better than that!” Liam shouts at the actor on the screen. “’Ell, even Ryder can do better.”

Vetra’s talons slip away and I nearly scream in anger. _I'm so close!_

“Of course I can.” I reply, fighting with all my strength to keep my voice even.

A talon brushes over my clit and I come undone. My muscles stiffen up so hard, I lose all feeling in my legs. Tightening my jaw even more is all I can do not to scream. I hear a snap in my mouth and I'm scared I just cracked a tooth. My mind comes slamming back into my body and I force my limbs to move. A crowning achievement because my legs seem to have been replaced with concrete ones.

“All right Ryder, come show us. I'll be dead for you.” Kallo stands up, ambles over to the projector and lies down on the floor. Everyone turns to me expectantly.

I glance down at my crotch, pretending to be shy. Satisfied that I haven't leaked through my panties, I stand up and “fall” emotionally at Kallo’s side. In reality, my useless legs just give out on me halfway there but I roll with it. Giving a pretty good rendition of the scene in question. I've watched the vid so many times, I have no trouble reciting the lines.

The thunderous applause from the crew at my performance doesn't register to me. Only the heated look Vetra shoots me does. _Can't you all just leave? Like right_ now? _My thighs are already turning sticky._

The others cannot leave the room fast enough for my liking. I notice Suvi blushing madly when she catches me nipping at the underside of Vetra’s neck. She evidently still harbours a crush on me.

The moment the doors close behind them, Vetra tackles me to the bed, attacking my mouth savagely. I spread my legs and let her settle between them, our breathing already fast and frantic. Hands wandering and clothes being loosened.

“Pathfinder, before you continue with your evening activities, I suggest you seek immediate medical attention from Lexi. I detect multiple lacerations of your vaginal walls. Immunisation against Dextro-Levo contamination is also recommended.”

I drop my head heavily into the pillow, a sigh of pure exasperation issuing from my lips. “Way to be a mood killer SAM.”

“As a SAM my primary directive is to ensure the safety and well-being of the Pathfinder. Should you have continued, you may have suffered severe internal haemorrhaging or infection. Neither of which are beneficial to your health.” SAM’s voice has an uncharacteristic teasing tone to it which I pick up immediately.

“Vetra did SAM just sass me? Holy shit, he totally did. SAM is now a sassy AI!”

Vetra just stares at me blankly. “Sass you don't know what that is? Did it not translate? Damn someone should really update the translators.”

“It's not that Sara. I hurt you.” She raises a hand and looks at her sharp talons. “I hurt you very badly according to SAM.” I can tell she is close to tears and a wave of understanding washes over me. She only has two members of her family, Sid and me, and she just hurt one.

“Hey… it's alright Lexi will patch me up, she always does. Anyway, it's not a bad way to go. I know a Pathfinder should die surrounded by an alien planet and probably eaten by an alien animal and all but being fucked to death by her Girlfriend seems pretty good to me.”

She grips my shoulders tighter, her grip is too tight, bordering on the brink of pain. “This, _this_ is not a joking matter Sara! I could have killed you!”

“Vetra _calm_ , _down_. I'm fine okay? Let's go see Lexi and then we can continue with our _activities.”_

I wince as the cold, smooth metal regenerator enters me. Lexi is furious at the both of us. Precaution and safety are the two words that stick with me. Probably because of the number of times she repeats them. Vetra has her head bowed in permanent apology, I just tune her out. The way she talks reminds me of an early human drama about space flight and discovery. _Heh, Bones. Suits her. She is after all always patching me up. She just needs a southern accent to complete the character._

“Ryder are you listening to me?” Her annoyed voice snaps me out of my musings. “Huh? Yes Doc, what was it?”

“I asked if you have taken any meds to prevent contamination during intercourse?”

“Nope.” I say popping the ‘p’. “We were just gonna ask you for some.” I smile innocently at her.

The prick of the applicator hurts more than it should. The flicker of satisfaction on the Doc’s face disappears as fast as it appears. _I swear she loves sticking needles in me._

She sighs and turns towards me. Even though I'm lying on the biobed without any pants and a cold metal instrument visibly sticking out of me, I find myself without an ounce of self-consciousness. Lexi probably knows every inch of my body even better than I do, given the number of times she has had to patch me up. I've always been a vanguard after all, _high risk-high reward._ Her gaze is purely professional as it travels down my body, settling on my abused thighs. I silently thank her for adhering so adamantly to her professional attitude. Though I wish she would stop dancing around her relationship with Drack.

“You will also need some analgesic cream to help with the chafing. I shouldn't need to remind you again, your bodies are nearly complete opposites of each other. Safety and precaution are mandatory in a relationship such as yours.” She withdraws the rod from me and lets me pull my pants back on.

“The shots I gave you last for 24 hours each dose. I currently don't have any long term immunisation shots but I can get some the next time we're on the nexus. It should allow you to gradually develop immunity against each other. Vetra, please keep your talons blunt so we don't have a repeat of this. Ryder, _no penetration_ for the next three days. The regenerator helps a lot but we need to make sure there is no scarring.” She passes us six vials. Three red, three blue. I thank her as she shoos us out of the Med bay.

I glance at my watch. An actual antique mechanical timepiece that requires frequent winding. The glass casing is cracked and its leather strap is worn to the thread but it's one of my most prized possessions. It belonged to my father, the only personal item _aside from his guns,_ that he brought to Andromeda. Brought back from the first contact war, Humanity’s first brush with alien life. His watch was broken when a Turian nearly ripped out his throat. Repaired and left broken, the watch to us was a symbol of experiencing the unknown headfirst, regardless of the danger. A trait that all Ryder's share. We’re all a bunch of adrenaline junkies anyway.

 _3:14 AM._ Damn that visit with Lexi took longer than expected. Granted, there is no day and night in space but we try to stay synced to Nexus time. Most of the crew is probably already asleep, except maybe Kallo, Peebee and Lexi. The Salarian somehow manages to survive on 20 minute naps and copious amounts of Blast-O cereal. Peebee has a never ending supply of energy and Lexi is well… Lexi. She doesn't seem to sleep. _Ever._

I really want to just curl up in bed and fall asleep but my brain is still jumping all over the place. _Vetra made me cum in front of all our friends._

Just as we reach the doors to my quarters, both our stomachs rumble their protest.

“Kitchen?”

“Kitchen.”

I decide to boil the water the old fashioned way, in a pot and on the stove. I can tell Vetra needs to talk. Her posture is ram-rod straight, browplates pinched and fingers fidgeting.

“Vetra… are you all right?” I lean into her, running a hand over her cowl. She flinches away from my touch. “Vetra…” I sigh, letting my hand drop and land on her thigh, rubbing soothing circles on her skin. For once I’m glad that shorts were included in the fabrication blueprints. The rough leathery skin under my fingers is warm and comforting.

“How can you still be like this? I hurt you.” She stands up and walks over to the counter, pulling the pot off the stove and pouring the boiling water into two cartons of dehydrated food.

My anger flares at this woman. “How can I-” my voice cracks in anger for a moment before I reign it in and continue screaming at her. “I love you! How hard is it for you to accept that not everything boils down to favours and requirements? If you still haven’t understood why I fell in love with you… then there’s no reason for us to continue this relationship. If all I am is another obligation, then I can find another woman to warm my bed.” I huff and prepare to leave the kitchen, growling stomach be dammed.

A three fingered hand wraps around my left wrist, jerking me back into a tight embrace.

“I’m sorry Ryder.” Her chin nuzzles the top of my head. “I’m still getting used to being able to open up to you. I… I’m sorry for hurting you…in more ways than one. Will you forgive me?”

I flick her nose hard. She yelps and jumps back, clutching the only sensitive part of her face. “That was for being an idiot. A hard-headed-thick-skulled-bony-plated idiot!”

 _My_ hard-headed-thick-skulled-bony-plated idiot.

I do my best to stay angry at her but I just can’t. Acting on impulse, I grab her waist and yank her flush to myself. Her breastbone slams painfully into my sternum but I don’t notice, being distracted by her lips crashing into mine. I push her backwards into the seat and bite my way down her neck. Usually I don’t use so much force, but this time, I let loose. Grabbing mouthfuls of thick, tough skin between my teeth and sinking down with all my strength. I know this can never hurt her in any way. My blunt human teeth cannot possibly penetrate her hide but I know I’m penetrating her heart. I sink my teeth into a cord of muscle at the base of her neck. I can feel her pulse underneath her skin when my teeth somehow go deeper. This is the spot known as _Thy’tha Corprealis._ The main artery that connects a Turian’s brain to their heart, similar to a human jugular. In Turian culture, mates bite that spot with their teeth, licking up the blood that flows from the wound. This creates a literal blood-bond between the two mates. Their DNA is irreversibly changed, a part of each of them living inside their partner.

Vetra’s pulse quickens as she realises what I’m doing, the significance of the action not lost on her.

“Are you sure Ryder? You want me in that way?” her pupils are fully dilated and her breathing is rapid and inconsistent.

“Of course not, I’m just playing.” I tease against her skin, latching onto her neck again and biting with all my strength. When my jaw tires and I’m gasping from the effort, I pull away to admire my handiwork. Disappointed barely covers my feelings. All my efforts and nearly breaking my jaw in the process has only created a ring of small impressions on her hide. Her eyes shine with unshed tears as she flips us over in the seat.

Our eyes meet, love and adoration pouring from each of us. This moment is infinitely better than making love, even if her thigh _is_ pressing into my centre. She gives me a parting kiss, a long and passionate one that leaves both of us even more breathless and panting harder for air before she ducks down to nip at my neck. I gasp as her sharp needle-like teeth test the boundaries of my skin’s resistance. My gaze shifts down to hers. Our eyes meet again. She must see my fear and uncertainty because she licks at my neck. _Turians secrete special saliva contains antiseptics and numbing agents when performing mating bites._ I remember Lexi telling me that in one of her many e-mails about alien biology. At the time I took no notice of it as I was too busy dealing with my father’s death. Flirting with everyone helped to numb the pain just as much as a bottle would. Plus, watching Suvi squirm in her seat when I flirted with her was always the best part of my day.

“This will only hurt for a moment.” Vetra whispers against my skin and bites down, her teeth effortlessly piercing my skin, injecting my bloodstream with her DNA. The pain recedes as quickly as it came, I look down to see her licking my blood off her teeth. Small trails of red seep from the wound at the base of my neck. I should feel scared or panicked because a Turian has just injected me with their Dextro DNA. By right, I should be frantically searching for a hypospray to countermand the contamination but I feel calm, at peace and cared for. The way she curls up around me and nuzzles into me only serves to reinforce the fact that I am hers, taken, _mated._

The warm heat coursing through my veins gradually increases. Initially, I just attribute it to the mass of purring Turian adorableness curled around me but as it grows in intensity, I find it harder and harder to ignore it. Pretty soon, I’m sweating and shivering, I feel the pangs of arousal shoot through me.

“Vetra… what is happening to me?” I shake her in panic.

“Shit. I didn’t expect this to happen.” She quickly strips off her pants. My eyes go wide, not because my girlfriend is stripping but because my girlfriend is _stripping… inside the kitchen._ Where anyone could walk in and see her. I know Turians do not have the same idea of modesty as Humans but whenever her pants end up on the ground, mine follow not soon after.

“What? What’s happening?”

She looks at me worriedly and my fear skyrockets. There are very few things that can make Vetra worried. Either me dying or Sid dying. Neither of those things help in the current situation.

“Blood fever. Turians undergo this when they are ready to produce fledgelings. The female will enter a state of heightened arousal while she ovulates. The male will mate with her multiple times until she is pregnant.” I understand her fear now, we are both female. We can’t get each other pregnant.

“What happens if the female doesn’t get pregnant?” I ask, my voice cracking.

“Extreme pain, severe hormonal imbalance and in rare cases, death.”

“Oh wonderful. If we don’t somehow conceive, I’ll die. Great. Thanks Vetra!” I throw up my hands in exasperation.

“This shouldn’t happen! Precisely because we are both female! The blood fever only happens between mated couples capable of bearing fledgelings.” A look of realisation washes over her face.

“We didn’t complete the process Ryder! Your teeth didn’t pierce my skin! Quick! Get a knife or something!”

Stumbling around the kitchen with your pants around your ankles, rifling through drawers and shouting for joy as you hold a knife and fork over your naked girlfriend while she’s lying on the table isn’t how anybody wants to be found. Let alone by the bridge officer that stares at your ass whenever you’re on the bridge.

Suvi’s jaw is on the ground as the mug she’s holding in her hand slips from her fingers and crashes to the floor. She is dressed in pink cotton pyjamas with bunnies printed all over them. Remains of hot chocolate and biscuit crumbs ring her mouth. The pink only serves to further highlight the massive blush that is crawling all over her face.

“Oh my god, Ryder!” Her adorable accent fades into a squeak and her eyes are darting everywhere, unsure where to focus. Her gaze flicks from Vetra’s stunned face to the knife and fork in my hands to my bare ass before she resolutely decides to stare at the most interesting empty spot on the wall.

“Um, what are… you two… doing?” She says while she bends down to retrieve her cup, gaze still fixed awkwardly on the empty, white composite wall. Her hand misses the cup three times before she finally stands up and slides around us to wash her cup in the sink.

“Midnight snack.”  We say in unison, blushes travelling down both our necks.

“I can see that.” She tries to joke but it falls flat awkwardly. She tries to shimmy around us, all the while facing away. Her ass bumps into mine and she mutters out an embarrassed “Sorry Ryder.” and hastily makes her exit, her rapid soft padding disappears into the bunks.

“Oh gosh, Suvi just walked in on us. She saw my ass! Oh god, what are we gonna do?”

“Ryder, worry about Suvi tomorrow. We need to make sure you don’t die now. Like _right now._ Ryder!” Her voice is urgent and commanding.

“Yes, right. Focus on not dying. Yes.” I carefully poke her with the fork, afraid of accidentally rupturing her artery and killing her.

“Sara, I’m _Turian._ You’re gonna have to pierce my skin. Use the knife, cut small incisions in your teeth marks and bite me, quickly!” I follow her instructions, swallowing the lump in my throat as her blue blood begins to seep from her neck.

I bite down hard on her and finally, the coppery taste of her blood greets my mouth. Initially, I almost recoil at the taste but I remind myself that I’m tasting _her._ Her actual lifeblood and I bite down harder, eager to show her how much I love her in her own culture’s way.

Immediately, I feel the heat in my body begin to taper off, I stop shivering and slowly allow myself to be brought into her arms. “That was close.” We whisper to each other. I have never felt so comfortable, so cared for, so loved before. Even though we are lying on a cold metal table in the middle of the kitchen.

“We should go.”

“Agreed.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hopefully I didn't go to OOC. Next chapter will be an unrelated one-shot dealing with Vetra's fetish for Ryder's armor.


	4. Vetra's Armor Kink

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I don't know what possessed me to write this. Honestly, I spent waaaay too long staring at Ryder's ass while I ran around the cluster killing Kett and saving outposts. So I figured, if I devote so much time staring at her ass, Vetra should too. Then I crafted the lovely remnant heritage armor and noticed the plates on her waist. A couple more hours of staring at her ass and a few days of re-writing this piece of...  
> Anyway,  
> Enjoy.  
> D4

** Armor **

** Vetra POV **

Remnant reborn she called it, thick angular metal pieces ‘rezzing’ into place over her under armor. Infinitely adaptable, the armor can change its consistency and density in an instant. Either making her an immovable, impenetrable wall or light as a feather and able to reach lubricious speeds while charging, using relativity to obliterate her enemies in a spectacular _infinite mass punch._ All controlled by her central nervous system and linked to SAM. Designed in collaboration with the egg heads on the nexus, Sara says that this armor could be the next phase in hardsuits. However, since the tech is so untested and dangerous, she has the only suit in existence and will be the only one to test it until all the kinks are worked out. The ‘perks of being the Pathfinder’ she laughed when the thick plates snapped into existence over her for the first time.

Forgoing her usual black and gold paint job for Arctic camouflage, she was nearly invisible in the constantly shifting landscape. We were on Voeld to investigate increased Kett activity. Even though the Archon was dead, his forces had somehow completely restructured themselves and were once again threatening the Angaran resistance. Naturally, they sought out the Pathfinder for help. Ryder immediately agreed, partially because she always loved killing Kett and partially because she needed to improve our alliance with the Angara if we wanted to settle Voeld.

I kept my eyes on the horizon, doing my best not to look at the delicious, supple ass swaying with every step, nor the sharp angular panels at her waist that closely mimicked Turian bone structure. Tearing my eyes away from her waist and other _assets_ , I noticed too late that my life support was low, nearly to the point of complete failure. “Crap. Ryder, my life support is low, I need to recharge.”

“Cave, lets head in here.” She points to a small indent in the side of a massive glacier.

We had left the Nomad about a kilometre away so that the Kett wouldn't pick up on our signal. Thus the seemingly endless walk through the freezing cold.

I help her set up the portable heater while Jaal keeps watch. His long ranged plasma rifle allowing him to spot any enemies from afar. The curve of her back is accentuated when she bends down to deploy the stabilising legs. My sub-harmonics thrum in appreciation. The flutter that passes through her body gives me all the acknowledgement I need.

She switches on the heater and lazily reclines against the wall of the cave. I cannot see her eyes behind the smooth, white metal of her armor, but I can only assume that they are busy undressing me. She _is_ insatiable.

I advance on her slowly, laying one talon on her chest plate and letting it scratch over the surface, sending vibrations into her. I mimic the movement Cora used on her Brother, spreading my talons slowly as I step into her space. I can hear her breathing quicken through the Comm when she realises what I'm doing. After all, she did put the idea in my head after we watched Scott finally get it on with Cora. Totally legally of course, under the elder Sister protection act which did not involve bugging the room, slipping aphrodisiacs into their drinks or using a Salarian prostitute with retinal implants.

“Ryder, is everything all right? Your heart rate is increasing rapidly.” Jaal’s voice cuts in over the Comm, putting an end to any shenanigans.

“Yep, everything's just peachy.” She breathes, turning off her Comm, she leans into me and whispers. “We’ll continue this later Vetra.” I can almost hear her smirk behind the metal while she slinks away, ass shaking tantalisingly.

I don't know if it's the light reflecting off the ice or my eyes playing tricks on me, but I can swear with a 93.87% certainty that the plates of her armor reconfigure themselves again, settling into the familiar shape of spurs and a long, perfectly curved crest for a moment. Just before she steps out into the burning cold.

The small outpost we were sent to investigate turns out to be the largest Kett command center we have ever faced. Wave upon wave of Kett swarm us. I stay busy boosting our shields whenever I can, swapping heat sinks and spraying bullets in the general direction of the advancing horde. I can see Sara getting tired, her rapid blue flashes slowing before stopping all together. Even with a SAM, one can only use their biotics for so long. She lets loose one last nova, activates her cloak and stumbles behind a generator, a hail of plasma following her.

“Sara!” I scream and scramble to her side. “SAM, give me her vitals!”

I skid into cover next to her, her cloak deactivates and I can finally see the…complete lack of damage on her armor.

“Elevated heart rate, minor bruising of her third and fourth rib, extensive bruising to both hands, bruising to L3 and L4 vertebrae, bruising to…”

“Bruised and battered but alive. Got it SAM.” I try to pull off her helmet but it refuses to come off. I check for a seal but I find none. The whole ‘constructed into place’ is taken very seriously.

Ryder lets out a grunt and the helmet simply vanishes. “Severe caloric deficiency detected. Seek immediate intake.” SAM’s monotone echoes inside Ryder’s suit. She reaches into a pocket in her belt and pulls out a little white pill. Popping the pill into her mouth, I hear the crunch of the sugarbomb as she crunches it between her teeth.

“My faith will shield me. You will die before me pitiful scum. The Archon commands it.” The voice of a Kett base commander graces our ears.

“Did no one ever tell these guys? I killed the Archon.” A blue aura surrounds her.

“Sara no, you’ll…” my sentence hangs in the air as she flashes me a toothy grin and launches herself at the Kett. _Spirits Sara! You’ll be the death of me._

Fear grips my heart as she battles the commander, leaving Jaal and I to handle the minions. Anger and worry cloud my mind and I very nearly get fatally shot in my distraction, my tech armor saving me from painful plasma burning through my flesh.

“THE SLOW BLADE PENETRATES THE SHIELD BITCH!!!” Her raucous laughter fills the empty arena when she plunges her sword into the Kett’s heart after slamming into the orange bubble enough times to deplete the Kett’s power supply.

Slumping onto her back, her mouth is stretched wide in the goofiest adrenaline-fueled grin I have ever seen. “Maaaan, I've always wanted to say that. It's one of my favourite quotes from Frank Herbert’s Dune. Y’know, the Sci-Fi series of books way back in the 1960s??”

She stretches out her hand to ask for a pick up but I ignore her, turning on my heel and storming out the door.

The ride back to the Tempest is far from a pleasant one. I climb into my seat silently, eyes fixed on the headrest in front of me. A brown ponytail comes bobbing into view long before my ears pick up the second half of her apology. “Mn’sorry Vetra.” is all I hear, her words drowned out by the growl caught in my throat.

When we finally get back to the Tempest, my mood has not improved in the slightest. When she unlocks the Nomad’s doors and opens my door, I shove past her with a growl. Stalking into the armory (my room) and slamming the door behind me.( Angrily pressing the button on my ‘tool.)

_By the spirits she really gets on my nerves. I love her so much but sometimes she is just an idiot. A total, complete idiot that has no sense of personal safety or even spares a single thought for her loved ones._

I vent my frustration on a crate, punching and kicking the metal box. Leaving behind large dents and a few claw marks from my toes. I kick off my boots and shrug out of my heavy armor, leaving the skin tight undersuit on. Rolling into bed, I check the time. _4:32 PM. Fuck. My. Life._

The hiss of the doors opening announces her arrival even before she says a word.

“Vee, I'm sorry. I know why you're mad but I knew I could do it. I handled him easily. Please… talk to me.” I can hear her throat bob as she swallows thickly. “I fucked up, I get it. Please don't be mad at me anymore. Okay fine, be mad at me… god knows I deserve it, but please… talk to me. Please Vetra. I really am sorry.” I can hear the slight waver in her voice, the huskiness beginning to set in and I immediate know that the apology is genuine. Her first shaky breath pulls me into motion. I know she is trying to play to my instincts but I don't care. She rarely pretends to be helpless or submissive so I always take the chance when she gives it.

I stand up from the bed and stride over to her in two steps, taking her wrists in my hands, I slam them against the wall. Something drops from her hand but I ignore it, too busy inhaling her scent, the familiar strawberry shampoo she uses filling my nostrils. Her sweaty musk accompanies it, sending a rush of heat to my core. I trace the column of her neck with my tongue, tasting the salt on her skin. She lets out a whimper, the sound causing my instincts to flare even more. I duck down and latch on to her pulse, the white scars of my bite clearly visible on her skin. Sinking my teeth into the soft flesh of her neck, I relish in the gasp that escapes from her lips in a puff of air.

“Mine. _My_ mate. My love. My Sara.” I growl deep against her skin, my talons digging into her wrists as my teeth pull fresh blood from her neck.

She leans her cheek against mine as she whispers back to me. “I am yours, your mate, your love, your Sara.” Satisfied with my mates’ response, I detach from her neck, cleaning my teeth of her blood. Her lips find mine and we exchange a heated kiss, breaking apart only when oxygen demands we do.

I try to pull her towards my cot, to claim her fully as my instincts dictate, but only manage to collapse to the floor with her. She is still wearing full body armor so the thick angular planes of metal jab into my carapace as she falls atop me. As soon as she realises this, the plates begin to shift.

“No! Leave it.” I growl, my voice unyielding.

Her plates harden again into the familiar planes and angles of a Turian carapace. I run my hands down her sides, the armor there shifting aside to allow me more access. I reach her waist, usually I'm delighted by the curve I find there, the slimness of her waist flaring out into her hips. With the added plating, her hips are now almost structurally identical to a Turian’s. I grip her spurs and yank her flush to myself, jamming a thigh between her legs to give her something to grind on.

When she doesn't start moving straight away, I tug on her spurs and force her to start moving.

“Vetra…” her voice trails off into a breathless whine as she starts moving faster and harder against me, knees knocking against mine, lips pulled back in a permanent pant, teeth bared.

“Mm-fuck!” Her entire body goes rigid, knuckles tightening around my shoulders, back arched high over me, hips bucking wildly into my thigh.

I roll us over and claim her mouth again, my fingers weaving themselves into her hair. Sections of her armor slide off her body and coalesce into a perfectly smooth, black metal tetrahedron in the corner of the room, leaving her breasts and pussy bare to my attentions.

“Vetra…box…floor…present.” She spits out words between hard pants, her skin flushed a rosy pink, nipples standing tall, sweat shining.

My eyes quickly settle on the unmarked black box by the door, reaching for it, I rip off the cover. “For… you. Claim me…mate me.” Her voice begins to steady, her lungs finally catching up with oxygen.

I withdraw the cobalt blue phallus from its case. It is clearly a Turian penis, complete with a sizeable knot. The rounded, spherical stub at one end obviously meant to go inside the wearer, specifically a Turian. Silver nodules line the stub in a rosette pattern.

“Ryder, th-this is…” my breath catches in my throat as I fully realise what she means for me to do.

“A dildo for you to fuck me, yes. Why? Do you not like it? She said… shit is it the wrong size? Do you need to get it changed? Aww fuck, I knew it was too good to be true.”

“Sara where did you get this?” I raise an inquisitive brow plate, allowing my fingers to glide down the shaft. It's blue, bumpy curvature is roughly 9 inches long. Generous for a Human but simply average for a Turian.

She props herself up on her elbows and says. “Gill’s friend Jill. She's the chief repopulation engineer, responsible for boosting everybody's baby batter and also the only sex toy supplier in Heleus. Had to trade in a hundred units of Vanadium to get this.” Her gaze follows my hand intently, her tongue darts out and wets her lips.

She lunges forward and quickly finds the seam of my undersuit, agile fingers making quick work of it. Soft digits glide down my body, quickly settling between the cleft in my plates. I grunt my approval as one of her dexterous fingers ventures inside.

She takes the dildo from me with her other hand. Pushing my plates further apart, she activates the nerve contacts and slips the tip between my folds.

The blunt head glides along my wetness once…twice before my body yields and allows it inside me. Immediately the contacts connect to my nervous system, a jolt of fire blasting through every neuron and nerve ending. I gasp in surprise when I can feel her hands running over me, over my cock.

The toy is remarkably realistic, heating up to my body temperature, artificial veins pulsing in tandem with my heartbeat and even beginning to secrete wetness along the shaft, the same way a male Turian would produce his natural lubricant. Ryder’s hands glide along my length and I shudder, not used to the added sensations.

“Do you like it Vetra?” She asks, her eyes shining like diamonds in the dim light of the armory. Her head starts towards the swollen arrowhead of my cock and her pink tongue lightly grazes the ridge. “Guh!” I grip her head hard as my hips jerk forward, nearly taking her eye out in the process.

Her smile is far from innocent when she wraps her lips around my cock and sinks down onto it. The feeling of her lips around my cock is too much for my brain to handle, I loose control of my legs and go crashing to the floor. Her mouth never leaves my shaft, continuing to glide up and down my length even through the sudden change in spatial orientation.

I shove her off me, the sensations causing my brain to short circuit. My feeble mind shutting down from over stimulation. “Too much…can’t handle… mouth.”

“Too much huh? Well, I was gonna let you fuck me…but since you can’t even handle my mouth, there’s no way you can take my pussy.”

“NO!” I pounce on her, my cock slapping wetly on her stomach. With her body bare to me, my instincts take over and I drive into her. My Turian instincts dance in delight when I easily sink into her depths, her body offering no resistance. She mewls in pure pleasure as I relentlessly pound into her, my mind no longer even registering pleasure and focused solely on claiming my mate.

“Yes, Vetra. Yes!” she shamelessly shouts her pleasure, head lolling freely, breasts bouncing with each hard thrust. I am so focused on her that I fail to register the hiss of the armory doors opening behind me.

** Sara POV **

I wrap my legs around Vetra’s waist, allowing her to thrust even deeper inside me. My nails dragging down her back, digging into her rough plates. Cora’s unsurprised huff snaps my attention to her.

“Why am I not surprised?” she says, eyes rolling. “You know you really ought to do this in your quarters where not everyone has the override code for the door.” pointedly ignoring the sounds of pleasure and smacking flesh as she smoothly steps around us and drops off the rifles into the cleaning station.

“Have fun you two.” She waves goodbye as the doors shut behind her with a rush of air and a stream of chuckles. A faint grumble of "Horny lesbians better not get my shotgun dirty." can be heard through the door.

Vetra’s thrusts speed up and I’m left clinging on for dear life as she jackhammers into me. Her pupils are completely dilated, any trace of Vetra long gone. Only her mating instincts left in that muscular plated body of hers. I nearly rip off a chunk of her hide when her knot finally barrels past my folds and buries itself inside me. The tip of her shaft ramming into my cervix with every thrust. Confined to short powerful thrusts, it’s not long before her cock is twitching, full to bursting and straining to contain my reward. My mental preparation is no match for the torrent that comes pouring out of her.

She latches onto my neck again as she climaxes, hips bucking sporadically. Jets of hot cum batter my insides. Her knot swells even more, pushing me over the edge and I join her in release, each jet of cum triggering another set of rippling contractions from me which pulls another squirt of cum from her. Our climaxes go on seemingly for hours until we fall to the side. Sated, sweaty and basking in each other’s warmth and love, our shared release pooling on the floor. I curl into her cowl, savouring the sweet stretch of her knot sealing her cum in my pussy. I love the feeling of her nectar, warm and heavy in my belly.

 _Taken, mated._ I smile against her skin as a low hum resonates outwards from her.

“Did I tell you? I’m loving the new armor.” She purrs into my ear when she finally regains enough breath to talk.

“I figured. You couldn’t tear your eyes away from my waist and ass.”

“Shit. You knew?” She warbles, embarrassed at getting caught. I push against her chest, coming level with her eyes.

“Duh, I could feel your eyes burning into my behind. To be honest, I would’ve been offended if you didn’t look. I designed the armor with you in mind anyway, all part of my elaborate plan to get you to fuck me with this.” I clench my inner muscles around her cock, eliciting a groan from her.

“And how do you feel about your plan? Considering you got me mad enough to lose control and fuck you like a wild animal?” She says as I press a kiss to her crest, a happy smile on my lips. “Well I’m knotted to the woman I love with her cum sloshing around in my womb… I think my plan worked out all right, all things considered”

“Hmmm… makes sense, and since we have a few hours to kill before we’re due to report back, why don’t we make full use of our time.” She purrs happily as she rolls us over, her hips starting to pump again.

 “Sounds like a plan.” My giggles soon turn to moans as my girlfriend makes love to me. Far more gently this time.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So yea. Did you like it? Anything you want to see in the next chapter? Let me know in the comments below!


	5. Date night: Take 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A fluffy interlude for you awesome people! Watched Avatar three times back to back because I had to do a sharing on the film's technique so it kinda got stuck in my head. Soooo, yeah! This happened.  
> Enjoy!  
> D4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> anything else you wanna see? Drop a comment down below and I'll see if I can't wrangle that into a chapter.

** Date night: Take 2 **

** Sara POV **

** Hyperion SAM node **

“Sara, I have observed changes in your DNA structure since you shared the mating bite with Vetra. The alterations are quite drastic but non life threatening. By my calculations, your new bio-chemistry should allow you to consume and digest dextro-amino substances with a 73% efficiency.”

I tap my foot impatiently on the platform while I wait for SAM to finish his sentence. “Uh huh, that's cool. So now I don't need to stab myself with a needle every time before sex. Anything else? I need to prepare for tonight's date SAM.”

“I have three additional queries. Why did you allow Vetra to initiate the mating bite with you? By all considerations, it should have killed you. Secondly, I have observed you having sexual intercourse with her with the aid of a MK 4 Dextro-lyfe sensory aided dildo. What is the reasons for its use asides from increased sexual pleasure? Lastly, why do you Love Vetra? She not only possesses features that are not appealing to Humans but also cannot produce offspring with you. My only example of a long term relationship is between Alec Ryder and Ellen Ryder, the result of which is you and Scott. Thus I am curious to know why you continue this relationship with Vetra, a Turian.”

“Whoookay. That's a lot of questions. I… let her bite me because I knew that it meant a lot in her culture. I love her and wanted to show how much I did in her own way. Anyway we had shots on hand so if anything _really_ went wrong, we were prepared. For the dildo? Erm… mostly it was for pleasure but when we have sex with it, it allows us to feel… closer in a way? As for why and how I fell in love with Vetra? I have no idea. Honestly, her body _can_ be hard and uncomfortable at times but I like the texture and warmth of her skin. I… fell in love with _her_ not her body. Even though we can't have kids, I'm okay with that. I love her.”

“I think I understand now. You seek connection with her, that is why you allowed the bite and frequently allow her to mate with you. All life seeks connection. Thank you Sara.” I smile at the holographic ball, “no problem SAM. Though if you really want to debate the philosophy of life, I'm not the person you should be talking to. Scott is far better than me at words. I'm the more emotional and casual one of us.”

I step away from the console and pass through the door. Looking up through the window, I can see the Tempest docked and behind it, the immense curve of Meridian.

My omni-tool beeps, a message from Vetra.

_Hey you,_

_Got your message. Heading down to the Nomad with a cask of Serrice ice brandy. The pure, filtered one that's good for both of us. Tried to dress light but couldn't find anything lighter than the shorts and T-shirt from our first time ;)_

_See you soon,_

_V_

I hurry to the airlock, checking my reflection in a monitor screen as I breeze past. I adjust my scarf so that it sits a little lower, showing off my mark. I can't help but be a little surprised that no reporter has yet hounded me for an interview on the subject but I'm all to pleased to show off that I'm taken and mated to the woman I love.

My heart leaps in my chest as I come around the corner and lay eyes on her. She is leaning against the Nomad in nothing but the white initiative shirt and black shorts. She doesn't even have her visor on. She turns and starts walking towards me when she senses me coming.

“Sara.” She chirps, harmonics light and happy. I reply by bumping my forehead against hers and pulling her down for a kiss. Her slight thrum turns to a happy trill when she sees my mark.

“You got a tattoo.” She traces the small blue triangles ringing the bite mark on my pulse. “Yea. Only seemed right to return the favor.” I nuzzle the side of her face and hug her tight. “I love you Vetra Nyx.”

“Come on, I need to show you something.” I say as I hop into the Nomad.

The drive is slow and beautiful. Lush forests give way to sparkling lakes which turn to huge plains, homes for the animals we brought from earth. We spent the whole time with smiles on our faces, fingers interlinked over the shifter.

“We’re here.” I say when we pull up into a secluded clearing. Bio luminescent plants ring the small pool of water. Insects float past, their bodies glowing a myriad of blues and greens. When SAM had told me of the Jardaan test biome for species to be seeded on Havarl, I knew I had to bring Vetra here.

“This…this is beautiful Ryder.” She says, bringing a small butterfly like insect to her face its glow reflects off her eyes, making them sparkle. More insects flutter around her crest, forming a glowing halo around her head. Sunset approaches and the dimming light only serves to illuminate her beauty.

“No Vetra. You're beautiful.”

Her smile immediately vanishes as she face palms, letting out an overly drawn out sigh. “That is by far the cheesiest line I've ever heard from you.”

“Yes but you love me for it.” I say as I take her hand and tug her deeper into the clearing. Setting her down onto the soft grass, she gapes and coos at an adorable blue lizard that pulses rainbow colours when her talons scratch over its back. I smile at my mate sitting there in the grass, halo of insects and glowing lizard on her shoulder, legs for days disappearing into the grass. “Lemme just go get the stuffs, don’t you move an inch.”

“I moved.” She cheekily taunts me by leaning back onto the grass one slender leg extended, her toe brushing over my shin. “Oh, now youre just asking for it!” I grab her foot and pull her towards me. I kneel on her hips and kiss her senseless. Her hands are far from idle, grabbing handfuls of my butt and lifting me higher so she can suckle on my neck. I feel my shirt creeping higher up my back as her right hand ventures upwards.

“Nu-uh. Not so fast. Dinner first, dessert later. Plus, you haven’t even seen the best part!”

Her faceplates settle into an adorable pout, folding her arms as she huffs her displeasure. “Oh come on now, I brought… _Apatarae_ steak. I’m pronouncing that right, right?”

“It’s Apat'arae  steak, but close enough. You don’t have enough vocal chords to pronounce the whole name anyway. Let’s just hope it turns out better than my attempt at steak.” Her face brightens at the mention of the meat. Her nostrils flare as she opens the heat retention container. “Mmmmm, Ryder this smells _amazing!_ Where did you learn to cook this? Never mind that, where in Heleus did you find Apatarae meat?”

She doesn’t even bother to use cutlery, instead grabbing the chunk of meat and taking a huge bite from it. Her neck jerking violently back, tearing meat clean off the bone. She tips her head back and I’m reminded how birdlike she actually is as her head bobs up and down, the lump of meat visibly travelling down her throat. “Oh wow, this is just…” her words fail her and she just closes her eyes, basking in the flavour.

“Did I get it right? I mean, I can eat it but I can’t taste it. Apparently Turian taste buds differ greatly from human ones. The meat tasted quite plain to me. Drack gave me some tips but I kinda improvised a lot.” I dip my finger in the sauce and bring it to my mouth, recoiling at the extremely earthy taste. She takes a few more quick bites, each time letting out long moan of pleasure.

“Ryder, this is perfect. It tastes even better than my mom’s cooking! Spirits! Do you have any more?” She asks while she swallows the bone, I can hear it snapping and cracking as her gizzard pulverises it in her belly.

I nervously scratch at the back of my head. I was not expecting her to devour the whole thing in a minute flat. I mean, it _was_ the size of my head. “Sorry Vee, I only had one. It was the first cut of meat from the first Apatare's in Andromeda. I pulled some strings and got them to breed these as soon as the Turian habitat was stable. There isn’t any more but I can get another shipment the next time.”

“Thank you Sara. This is wonderful.” She hugs me tightly, purring happily. _My own warm Turian snuggle-buddy._

“Okaaay…so this didn’t go as planned. I only have some baked fish and rice left. It’s levo so if you wanna pinch any, go easy alright? I’ll go get the brandy.” I walk back to the Nomad. I don’t even have to turn on my flashlight because the grass glows when I step on it, lighting my path.

When I return, glasses and bottle in hand, I find Vetra lazing in the grass, legs tucked to the side as she licks the scraps of my meal from her fingers. “Vetra you didn’t…”

“Sorry. It was just too good! I couldn’t resist.”

“Then what am I gonna eat?”

“Ehm.” Hacking sounds come from her throat and she coughs up a chunk of Salmon, offering it to me. “OH GOD NO! NOPE! NO! NO! NO! I AM NOT EATING SOMETHING THAT HAS ALREADY GONE INTO YOUR STOMACH!”

“Your loss.” She casually swallows it back down. _Goddam. Sometimes having a giant bird as a girlfriend is just disgusting._

“Fine. Let’s just skip to the after dinner activities. I’ve lost my appetite anyway.” I try to reign in my urge to puke. “Oooh, now we get to the real meal?” She purrs seductively, crawling towards me on all fours.

“Nup. No sex for you tonight. YOU ATE MY FOOD!” I stomp foot angrily into the soft grass. She dips her head apologetically, sinking back into a seated position on the grass. “Fine, then what are we doing next?” She says, fingers fidgeting with the fabric of her shirt.

“Skinny dipping.” I say, already tugging off my top.

“Skinny dipping?”

“Skinny dipping.” I confirm with a nod, pulling off my scrunchie and letting my hair fall loose. “Y’know, swimming. Together. Naked.”

“You forget, Turians don’t swim. We sink.” She deadpans, fixing me with a scowl.

“I won’t let you. Plus, the pools' only chest height for me. You won’t have a problem with it at all.” I finger the clasp of my bra and let it fall to the ground, her eyes follow the fabric downwards and settle on my breasts.

“Come on Vee, live a little.” I kick off my pants and underwear and wade into the warm pool. Immediately, the algae in the water reacts to my movement and glows in bright blue swirls where I glide through it. She stands at the edge of the pool, uncertainty plain on her features before she throws caution to the wind and shrugs off her shirt. Leaving behind her shorts, she joins me in the water with slow, overly careful steps.

“That’s it. Slow steps, come to me. I’ve got you.” I say, encouraging her deeper into the pool as I walk backwards. Her foot must have slipped on a rock because her head suddenly goes under the water and she starts thrashing wildly, sending water flying everywhere.

“Nononono, stay calm! Don’t struggle!” I grab onto her armpits and pull her above the water, a feat that takes much more strength than I anticipated.

Her arms wrap tightly around my torso, her high pitched squeals of terror slowly toning down into small, fearful hums. “I got you…I got you…I got you…” I repeat softly into her ear until her death grip on me finally relaxes into a more manageable not-so death grip.

“See nothing to fear, the Pathfinders here.” I chuckle against her cowl while I wait for her breathing to slow.

“T-thanks Sara. I don’t know what came over me. I-I’m not usually afraid of things.” I press a kiss to her forehead and then bump it softly. “I know. But you’re so brave. You tried to swim for me.”

“I did didn’t I?” She replies, her voice a proud thrum. “So! How did I do?”

“Well… considering your skeleton is about three times as dense as a human’s and your carapace _is_ made of metal, I’d say you did excellent.” Her mandibles spread delightfully and she reaches behind my head to pull me close.

“Mark me Sara, thank you for giving me this. I love you.” She bites into my pulse as I do the same to her. I set us adrift in the warm pool, kicking my legs to keep our heads above the water. Glowing insects and algae surround us, turning the whole place into a scene straight out of a fairy tale.

“I love you too Vetra Nyx.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Aaaaand fade to black. ;)
> 
> EDIT: Thanks to Bringham who pointed me to this great repository of Turian info, I can now use proper words instead of butchering the universe with stuff I pull from my ass. 
> 
> For any writers out there.  
> http://spiritofredemption.wikidot.com/language-dictionary#toc7


	6. Cycles And Messages

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> So I initially intended for this to be two separate chapters but it kinda ran away from me so I decided to leave it a one whole 6849 word Long thing. Essentially, this is two for the price of one. I'll be super busy from this Monday onwards so updates will definitely be a lot slower. I apologise for that. At the moment, I only have one chapter thoroughly fleshed out in my brain. So any new things you want to see will be greatly appreciated.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning for gore and intense violence. Vetra loses it a little in this one. If there's any spelling mistakes/ glaringly obvious errors, do let me know. I'm typing this on my phone and sometimes auto-correct does weird things.

** Chapter 6 **

** Cycles **

** Ryder POV **

“I blame you Gil! Why did I let you talk me into letting Jill boost my batter?” I scream at my engineer as I empty my guts into the toilet. Human hormones _do not_ agree with Turian genetics at all. Ever since I got the procreation blockers removed, I've been having horrible migraines and hot and cold flushes. SAM is not being very helpful, insisting that it is a simple hormonal imbalance that he has dedicated 480 thousand processing threads to.

“It wasn't my fault. You're the one that decided to do it. But I must say, it really was a think later-do now decision. I respect that Ryder.”

“NOT FUCKING HELPING GIL! I need like an aspirin or something. SAM how's the rebalancing coming along?” I rinse my mouth as another pulse of pain rolls through my brain.

“Still rebalancing Pathfinder. Standby…continue to standby...” The nausea passes and my headache suddenly reduces. _Countermeasures activated._ I hear SAM say to me over our private channel.

“Pathfinder, we have a situation on Eos. Raiders are attacking the outpost.” Suvi’s voice says in my ear. “WHY THE FUCK IS THIS HAPPENING? WHY CAN’T I TAKE A BREAK FOR ONE GODDAM SECOND?” I scream, flailing around and slamming a fist into the bathroom wall. I stalk angrily out of the room and climb the ladder.

** Vetra POV **

“Well…kid’s got something wrong for sure. You smell that too don’t you.” Drack nudges me with one massive elbow as Ryder storms past the kitchen. I let out a small snort in response, too focused on my datapad and the disturbing reports of the raiders on Eos.

“She started to smell funny after the shot. Do you think something’s wrong with her?” I ask Drack, lowering my datapad for a moment.

“She’s fertile. Humans are strange things. Their females have a monthly fertility cycle, unlike every other species. They bleed out their insides once a month. They also release pheromones for some reason. I don’t know why, not like their noses can even smell it in the first place.” He grumbles, turning back to his roast preparations.

 _True, humans have the worst sense of smell out of all the Milky Way species, except for the Hanar. The jellyfish people don’t smell the way non-aquatic species smell anyway._ I muse to myself. Stealing the few moments of quiet to prepare myself for the task ahead. Sara will be calling for me any second now.

“Probably wanna look out for headaches, nausea and her getting angry at literally nothing. At least that’s what one of my old friends told me about his wife, conditions improved a lot after she got pregnant. Probably the same for all females I imagine.” He laughs a deep Krogan rumble as hammers the chunk of roast, slamming the spices deep into the meat and tenderising it at the same time.

“Vetra, I need you suited up and ready for an assault. We got some raiders to kill.” Ryder’s voice sounds over the comm. _Yep, already on my way._

=====

“WHY CAN’T YOU ASSHOLES LEAVE US ALONE?” Ryder yells, catapulting off into the biggest mass of raiders and letting loose with a nova. She leaves a singularity behind, warping back into cover next to me.

“I’M HAVING MY FUCKING PERIOD! LET ME EAT CHOCOLATES AND LAZE IN BED!” She screams yet again as she charges to detonate the combo she constructed. Raiders fly in every direction, blue fire burning on their armor, leaving the stragglers for me and Cora to mop up.

She lets out a long breath when the last raider is face down in the sand. Deactivating her helmet, she holsters her sweeper assault rifle and starts skipping back to me. Brown bangs bouncing in the wind, broad smile on her face. “See? No biggy, couple of raiders just to get your blood pumping.” Her eyes sweep the horizon and settle on one of the old abandoned habitats.

Pointing to the tallest one in the pile, she blinks towards it and begins to climb. Looking back and beckoning to us with an outstretched hand. “C’mon! We gotta get to higher ground. Their second wave should be coming any minute now.” She disappears behind a stack of crates, unlimbering her sniper rifle. _Who in their right mind stores crates on the roof?_ I grumble to myself and activate my jump-jet to boost myself up.

“Why do we need to go on the roof? I can't hit shit with my shotgun from this range.” Cora whines and tosses her hair when she pulls herself up onto the prefab, wiping sweat from her brow and squinting into the sky.

“ _Because,_ ” Ryder hefts her Inferno and mimes looking down the scope, “I need to test out my new toy!” The first shuttle lands and she snaps us a wide grin while she settles into her sniper pose, shoulders squared and arms steady as steel, barrel tracking the first unlucky raiders jumping off from their shuttle.

=====

“Wow this sniper is a piece of shit! Three shots for one guy? _Useless!_ ” Ryder angrily chucks the Inferno down, letting it clatter away from her. “For a super advanced race that can create life, you would think they knew how to strike first and strike hard.” Reaching behind, she pulls out her Sweeper and prepares to charge. “At least they got one gun right.” She says, petting her rifle lovingly.

“See you on the flip side!” She yells, boosting backwards off the roof and executing a perfect backflip, right onto one unlucky Turian and running him through with her sword. She flashes a taunt to Cora and promptly vanishes behind her cloak.

“Really Ryder?” Cora hisses next to me, bristling and readying herself. “My mind and body are one in battle.” She whispers to herself and the huntress is gone in a flash of blue. “Of course! Sure, just leave me behind!” I shout after the two women, offhandedly shooting the outlaw sneaking up behind me. _Crazy biotics, always charging off._

Looking down to the ground, I brace myself for the two story drop. Ignoring the gunfire and running commentary of kills the two biotics are relaying over the comm. Even with jump-jets, gravity is still a real issue. Fire your jet too early and you risk increasing the height and consequently, the impact of your jump. Too late and you might as well not have fired it at all. Biotics never have a problem with this because they can encase themselves in dark matter and essentially float themselves to the ground. _That_ , or they take the shortcut down by directly charging at an enemy.

Stepping off the roof, I enjoy the brief moment of weightlessness as I hang in the air, my jump-jet suspending me for a split second. Landing with a thud, I barely have enough time to activate my gun before I’m sent crashing through the prefab by an explosion and a heavy mass slamming into my chest, knocking all the air out from my lungs.

** Cora POV **

“That’s six!” Ryder shrieks over the comm, pirouetting off a Krogan and reactivating her cloak before his lifeless corpse can hit the ground. I finish off a Salarian with a blast from my shotgun. Shards of ice effortlessly turning his skull to pulp. “That’s eight, keep up rookie!” I shout back to her, already throwing a shockwave towards my next group of targets.

“VETRA LOOK OUT!” I hear Ryder scream over the comm. Her voice filled with more fear than I have ever heard. More even, than when she was facing the Archon. I see her blinking rapidly towards her Turian. The rapid whumps of her biotics flaring drumming against my eardrums.

I realise too late why she is so scared. A hydra mech has its sights set on Vetra, its menacing triple laser beams painting a crimson triangle on the Turian’s downturned head. Ryder charges the last few meters, colliding into her mate. Wisps of dark energy  coalescing around her arm into a poorly charged backlash.

** Vetra POV **

_Smoke. Fire. Pain._ Are the first things I feel as I snap back into my body. My ears are ringing, nothing makes sense. I cough heavily, feeling something wet spew forth from my mouth. Wiping a hand over my fractured mandible, I stare at it unfeeling when it comes off in my hand. Barely registering that I’m holding a part of my jaw.

I can feel wetness seeping into my plates and I look down. A shard of prefab titanium has lodged itself in my abdomen, right next to Ryder’s head. Ryder’s helmet is shattered. Fragments of it fused into her face. Red runs from between the segments in her armor. _Sara._ I can hear my blood rushing in my ears, distracting me from the blood that is gushing from the back of her head, pooling on my stomach and mixing with my own, leaving behind a purple mess. Her face is pale and cold when I touch her. The usual heat I feel through my fingertips…absent. _No. No! NO!_

“Sara please, please open your eyes. Please. Sara please! SARA!” I scream bloody murder into the cloud of dust, my sub- vocals a keening cry.

“Ryder’s implant is damaged. Her vitals are weakening rapidly… her heart has stopped. Stimulating the cardiovascular core… no response. Stimulating the cardiovascular core… no response. I have requested immediate evacuation from the Tempest. Insist on haste before brain death occurs in 4 minutes. Recommend neutralising enemy force in the vicinity.” SAM speaks urgently over the Comm.

“Go…cast barrier!” I hear Cora shout into my ear. I shake off my shell shock, the Hydra isn't going to wait for the smoke to clear. For once I'm not happy to be right as a high explosive round comes tearing through the smoke and detonates an arms length away from me, raining debris on me.

_You killed my mate._

A second shell thunders through the air, striking me in the shoulder. Glancing off my reinforced shields. The secondary explosion drains my shields to 10% integrity. _More than enough._

I let loose my instincts. My primal nature rears its head as I pounce on a raider, ripping her arms clean off and beating her to death with them. I whip around and decapitate another one with my claws, fabricating super heated plasma over their tips.

My glowing talons rip and tear through the remaining bandits, leaving behind a gory puddle of entrails and dismembered bodies.

Turning my attention to the final enemy, I quickly study the mech. Digging my toes into the sand, I sprint forwards. Using speed passed down from my forebears. Ancient hunters prowling and chasing prey in Palaven’s thick forests. Closing the distance in seconds, I leap onto the chassis. My momentum sending the mech grinding to its knees for a moment.

The driver grabs at me with his manipulator arm but I dodge the sharp metal digits. Scrambling higher, I snarl into his optic sensors as I destroy them. My plasma infused claws rending through the metal easily, rendering the pilot all but blind.

Swinging wildly with his clamp, the heavy metal fist pounds into my side, sending me flying off the chassis and through a window. Glass shards burst through my armor and stab into my plates, sending pain lancing through me. Ignoring the burn in my leg, I stumble out of the ruined prefab. Roaring my anger and defiance at the metal titan, I lunge for him. Managing to latch on to his manipulator arm, I scratch and bite at the armor plating covering the sensitive electronics inside the suit. Tearing cable after cable free, his arm goes limp and sags off the joint. Suspended only by a few connecting wires. I can hear the pilot shouting in fury from the inside. Brandishing his cannon arm, he lets loose a shot even though I'm clearly out of his firing arc. The shot goes wide and detonates near one of the dropships still hovering over the area, knocking it out of the sky and sending it plummeting to the sand.

I hook my claws into the hatch seams and start clawing my way through. Bellowing my outrage, I rip the hatch clean off the chassis, exposing the man inside. Gripping him by his neck, I snatch him from the cockpit as the mech topples over backwards, sparking and driverless.

The man screams in terror. His eyes wide in fear, lips begging for mercy. I increase pressure on his windpipe, making him squirm and choke in my grip. “You killed my mate.” I growl next to his ear. The fearful whimpers and sobs coming from him only serve to stoke the fires of my rage.

Throwing him to the ground, I press one foot into his chest. Increasing my strength until I hear his ribs breaking. Grabbing onto his arms, I pull on them until they pop. He wails in agony as his arms are separated from his body, hanging loosely in the fabric of his armor. My rage not yet spent, I dig my talons into his thighs, slicing and tearing until his bones are exposed. At this point I'm surprised that the man is still conscious, still screaming. I stab my talons into his stomach, ripping him open from sex to sternum.

His screams turn to gurgles as blood fills his lungs and throat. Pulling out his entrails, I let it pool on the floor. Steaming and bloody. Finally, I sink my teeth into his neck and rip his throat out. His gurgles turning silent as his vocal chords are shredded.

“Sa addicto averso meus denae, sa animae pa meus korporae.” I hiss to his corpse. **_(His judgment behind my teeth, his spirit in my flesh.)_**

Letting his body drop to the floor, I spit out the chunk of throat and advance on the woman that failed to keep my mate safe. _Cora._

“Vetra calm down. Vetra… I don't want to have to do this.” Cora is backing away from me, palm outstretched, shotgun in hand.

“Calm?” I scoff. “You failed to keep my mate safe. You deserve far worse than the raider. You were my friend. I trusted you.” Growling at her, I raise my claws. Preparing to attack. Numbing pain courses through me. _She's using disruptor ammo_ I note. Barring my fangs, I push through the burning electricity. Planting one foot in front of the other, advancing steadily on the woman that got my mate killed.

“Vetra please.” She pleads with me, firing off two more orbs of electricity.

I lose control of my limbs, falling to the floor in a heap. She stands over me, shotgun pointed at my face. “I'm sorry.” She says. She pulls the trigger.

** Part 2: Messages **

** No POV **

_The medbay_ Vetra thinks when she finally awakes. Bandages cover the right side of her face and abdomen. She is naked and lying on her back. She tries to sit up but meets resistance. Her wrists and ankles are bound in thick metal shackles. Shackles clearly designed to hold a Krogan. _Probably because I turned feral, hope I didn’t hurt anyone._

“Lexi?” Vetra calls out. Voice hoarse and raspy.

“Ms Nyx, you're awake.” A light peppy voice chirps somewhere at the foot of the bed. Vetra tries to look but quickly gives up when the added motion causes her head to swim and she nearly blacks out.

“How are you feeling?” Vetra nearly mistakes the woman for Sara her haircut strikingly familiar, except this woman has shiny black hair and sharper features than Ryder. She also has a pair of non-standard smart glasses perched on her nose. Instead of a single micro lens, her glasses resemble actual spectacles. Lines of data stream down the insides.

“W-where am I? Who are you?” The wounded Turian asks, her voice betraying pain and confusion.

“My name is Dr Elsie Little. You're aboard the nexus, in one of the wards designed to hold a Krogan, well one on a blood rage.” The medical tech scans Vetra quickly, tapping rapidly on the datapad she's holding.

“My mate… is she alive? Did she make it?”

“The Pathfinder is alive but she's in a bad way. She broke her skull, suffered extreme internal haemorrhaging and fractured portions of her spine. Her SAM implant was damaged beyond repair. The exact amount of brain damage she suffered can’t be determined. To be honest, the Pathfinder… may not be able to pathfind anymore. She's in ICU.” Elsie fixes the distraught Vetra with as much of a sympathetic look as she dares. “She's… also in a coma...there’s a chance she will be paralysed from the waist down. The Doctors aren't sure if she will ever wake up… I’m sorry.”

Vetra sags into the bed, all life draining out of her. _My mate may not wake up. All because of me._

“Come, let’s get you out of these restraints.” Elsie helps Vetra into a sitting position, pulling a compression shift over the Turian’s head. Her patient is staring blankly at the wall, eyes glazed. Free hand softly touching the bite mark at her neck. _Wow, when she said mate, she really meant it. The Pathfinder_ is _mated to a Turian._

“Yep, she’s awake. Should I bring her up?” Elsie presses a hand to her ear. “Would you like to see her? The doctors say having her mate close by might help.”

“Please.” Vetra looks up to the human with wide eyes, voice barely a whisper.

Human and Turian make their way slowly through the hospital. Elsie helps Vetra remove the bandages from her mandible. Vetra’s mandible is sadly reduced to a stub, the right half of her mandible lost amidst dust and fire.

Arriving outside the glass observation window, Vetra’s heart plummets when she sees the numerous machines hooked up to Ryder. Breathing, feeding her and keeping her heart pumping. The Turian falls to her knees, hands clutched over her mouth, tears falling from her eyes. Shoulders shaking from the force of her sobs. “God’s Sara… I’m so sorry.” She trails her talons over the glass barrier, noting the many flowers and cards lining the base of the viewing panel.

“Get well soon.” Reads one of the cards, written by an eight-year-old girl. Vetra scans through another card, and another, and another. They all say the same thing, praising Ryder for her heroic act, thanking her again for giving the Initiative a future in Heleus. Vowing to make every effort count in honor of her sacrifice.

** Vetra POV **

Kneeling at the side of her bed, I take her hand in mine. The difference in our sizes infinitely apparent now. Her hand is small and frail. Pale skin much too soft against my own. Usually her body resists my advances, bouncing back, and full of life. Now, her body seems to have given up. Her fingertips stay flat when I press them, a sign of poor circulation.

“They speak of you as if you’re dead.” My voice cracks again, the pain too great to keep in. A keening cry tears forth from my throat. “But I know you’re in there. If you can hear me Sara, I want you to fight. I want you to fight for the great many people who need you, fight because that’s what you do. Fight because at the end of it all, I’ll be here waiting for you. Fight Sara. Fight…for me.” I press my forehead to her hand, willing with all my might that she would wake up and greet me with her smile that lights stars on fire. The smile that makes every day worth living, makes every hurt worth taking, but I’m met only by the mechanical beeps of the machines keeping her alive.

“She wouldn’t want you to cry.” The male Ryder twin stops next to me, resting his palm on my shoulder. “She...er wanted you to see this. I don’t know what it is but she said it was important. First time I saw her giggle so hard in my life so it must be good.” He smiles and hands me a datapad with a single stored message.

_Hey Vee,_

_Just wanted to let you know beforehand that I’m gonna get the shot Gill was sphazmoodiling about the other day. So, if I get super cranky or become a total bitch like Cora, don’t blame me. It’s the hormones. And yes… I know I initially outright refused the shot so, why the sudden change right?_

_Well, apparently during our 600 year trip through dark space, one of the SAM’s figured out how to merge Turian and Human genetics into a viable embryo! I know this might be a little too fast but I really, really, reeeeally want to start a family with you. After we’re properly wedded of course! Soooooo yea, I love you Vetra. Will you marry me?_

_Shit, I should be doing this face to face, shouldn’t I? Ah! Sonofabitch! These cramps really hit hard. Ok SAM, stop transcribing._

_With Love,_

_Ryder_

_PS: Could you reach out some feelers and look for chocolate? It helps with the cramps._

_PPS: You’re the best!_

My heart tears further apart the more I read her message. I can picture her pacing around her room, thinking of what to say. Perhaps rolling around in the bed, legs in the air. Sara simply cannot sit still. Her attention span is all but three seconds. I know that in the past, she had some self-destructive tendencies due to her nature. Being an uncontrollable ball of unlimited energy and having exhausted all her outlets, she turned inwards. She hides her scars behind the jacket she always wears. The scarf around her neck hiding the ugly purple band from when she tried to kill herself. The scar that she now covers with a tattoo because she wants to show off her mark. _My_ mark.

I spend the next few days by her side, only leaving when absolutely necessary. The others camp outside the quarantine room. They’re not allowed inside because without SAM constantly monitoring her altered physiology, Sara’s immune system has practically shut down. Her body going through a massive internal restructuring to cope with the sudden loss of SAM.

Elsie makes sure I stay healthy. Forcing me to eat and keep hydrated. She almost gives me a bath herself once. Dragging me all the way to the showers and blasting me with cold water from a hose before shoving me into a cubicle.

I barely see Lexi. The Asari has been re-tasked to work with the office of Andromeda resettlement, ensuring the birth of new generations in Heleus. Elsie replaces her aboard the Tempest.

** Log #1 (7 days post incident) **

_Ryder,_

_Scott convinced me to start writing messages to you. He says it’s what you did to keep sane when he was under. Well, asides from massive amount of alcohol you no doubt had consumed. Frankly I’m amazed how you managed to hide your drinking problem from Lexi and even me. I’ve taken the liberty of hiding the bottles. If you want a drink, you’re going to have to share. I’m still here, waiting for you to open those beautiful eyes of yours._

_With love,_

_V_

** Log #2 (8 days post incident) **

_Butterball escaped and somehow made it to where the other hamsters were. Apparently he managed to break into the female pen. Sid managed to catch him but he’s now the proud father of over a hundred. I guess that means we’re aunts now. Looks like we’re going to have a very large extended family. ;)_

_Still waiting,_

_V_

** Log #3 (14 days post incident) **

_Two weeks Sara, you’ve been in a coma for two weeks. I’m still hoping every day that I’ll walk in and find you smiling back at me. Don’t disappoint me. I need to see those doe eyes of yours._

_Tann has practically mothballed the Tempest. She’s still sitting pretty on the Nexus’ main dock, for how much longer I don’t know. He’s authorised the construction of three additional Pathfinder vessels. The Tempest is finally going to have sisters! She’s been awfully lonely. I’ve been running around for the past few days, making sure everything is in order. The shipyards are beautiful. The first ship finished final fabrication yesterday. As usual the leaders couldn’t agree on who should get it. Jaal managed to sweetalk Kesh and Kandros into letting the Angara have it. The other Pathfinders immediately agreed. Tann grudgingly called it a ‘symbol of trust’ and promptly left the meeting. You should have seen it. The way he strutted out, trying to pretend that he wasn’t fuming internally was just hilarious. He looked like an_ _Anserae. **(A small, semi-aquatic herbivore; Essentially a Turian three-toed geese.)** Anyway, I’m sorry I couldn’t come to see you. Still praying every day that you’ll open your eyes._

_Love you,_

_Vetra_

** Log #4 (24 days post incident) **

_Really short stuffs?_

_You gonna laze in bed for a month? WAKE UP SLEEPY HEAD! I caught Vetra downing shots in Vortex. Your girlfriend is starting to lose it. Oh wait, she’s not_ just _your girlfriend now is she? You’re mates now. I overheard Vetra blabbing to your Angara fella about you and her tying the knot. So when is it gonna happen? I ain’t getting any younger!_

_By the way, if you don’t wake up in the next two weeks, Tann is gonna give the Tempest to me. Which is perfect because I know absolutely fuck all about Pathfinding. You gotta wake up sis. I need you to wake up. Vetra needs you._

_Wake the fuck up,_

_Scott_

_PS: I seriously need you to wake up. Cora’s already all over my ass. She’s gonna be even more furious if another Ryder gets the Tempest over her. My relationship with her isn’t gonna save me from her wrath. In fact, I have a feeling it’s gonna make it worse._

** Log #5 (25 days post incident) **

_I love you. I need you. Please wake up._

_Waiting patiently,_

_Your mate_

** Log #6 (27 days post incident) **

_Good news, the doctors said your system has finally stabilised. At last they can replace your SAM implant. Looking forward to hearing your voice again._

_Love,_

_V_

** Log #7 (28 days post incident) **

_28 Days. You’re still not awake? -.- the doctors say the surgery was successful. SAM is currently re-adjusting your body. I hope you’re not in any pain. I can’t tell you how horrible it’s been. You’re just lying there, pale and small and I can’t do anything._

_Please wake up,_

_Vetra_

** Log #8 (29 days post incident) **

_I’m worried Ryder, you’re not showing any signs of regaining consciousness. The doctors have given me another 60 days to consider if I want to pull the plug. Of course I refused. I mean, SAM is finally reconnected to you. You have a real chance of pulling through now. He’s slowly stimulating your brain, rebuilding the neural pathways._

_SAM says that there’s good news and bad news. Bad news is that you still have minimal brain activity. Good news is that you’ll be able to walk._

_Missing you,_

_< 3 Vetra_

** Log #9 (31 days post incident) **

_Hello Ryder,_

_My name is Elsie Little. I’m the doctor responsible for Vetra’s health. I’ll also be replacing Lexi aboard the Tempest for when you eventually wake up and resume control of her. I made Vetra go for a Turian full body spa and assigned her to the gym for the rest of the day. Your mate has lost a lot of weight. Worrying over you has caused a significant impact on her health. Her plates have turned brittle and her colour is fading, your condition is killing her. She blames herself for your condition. I’ve had to pump her stomach twice now to prevent her from killing herself with alcohol poisoning._

_Yes, I know she’s your mate. She doesn’t bother to hide it. Rumours are flying all over the station about you two. The Moshae has offered to be the officiator at your wedding. I hope you consider it. It’s so romantic! It will truly be a spectacle to behold. A Turian and Human getting married in another galaxy by a newly discovered alien race. If that doesn’t show how different we are from the Kett, I don’t know what will._

_The other doctors and I are working round the clock with SAM to make sure you get to that wedding._

_Looking forward to an invite,_

_Dr Elsie Little_

** Log #10 (32 days post incident) **

_Sup Ryder,_

_Jill is coming along nicely, she even has a small baby bump now! While you’ve been busy waltzing around in la la land, I’ve been working with Kallo and Jaal. You won’t believe what we did! Somehow combining Angaran drive tech with our Eezo drives breaks physics in a way we don’t understand. We demonstrated the new drive in front of all the SAMs. They’re having a field day trying to come up with an equation to capture this phenomenon. Anyway, the new drive should allow us to theoretically travel to any part of Heleus nigh instantly. We made the first fold-space drive. Heck, it took us 600 years and a trip to a whole new galaxy but we did it! Thinking of calling it a warp drive. I just_ know _you will appreciate it. Since I’m already wearing a red shirt, mind dropping in a Mr? Then you can be all like; “Mr Gil, take us to warp.” It’d be awesome wouldn’t it?_

_So Meri or Dian? Still can’t decide._

_Gil_

** Log #11 (34 days post incident) **

_I’m sorry, I won’t be visiting as often anymore. Taan has me backed up on work. The confounding Salarian has approved another two exploratory vessels. This time, they’re not small corvettes like the Tempest but huge Cruisers capable of carrying over a thousand people each. The other Pathfinders have received their ships and are actively scouting the cluster, burning out any Kett remnant they find and geo-tagging as many planets as they can. Four new golden worlds have already been discovered. Habitat 7; the first planet you stepped foot on has been renamed in your honour. Ryder Prime they’re calling it. They’ve even built a memorial on it, right next to the first monolith we discovered. I think they made your dad far more handsome than he actually was. I have a feeling the artist took some liberties with your statue though, your boobs are at least a size or two larger than they actually are. They also made me taller._

_Love,_

_Your Turian_

** Log #12 (35 days post incident) **

[External Message]

_Dear Ryder,_

_Keri T’vessa here. I feel like there’s some truth to the rumours floating around the station. Everyone has known the two of you were involved. That kiss on Meridian put to rest all doubt of that. Now I hear you’re getting married. If the marks on both your necks are any indication, I’d say it’ll happen sooner rather than later._

_If you wake up, I want to be the first reporter you talk to. I need to know everything. How you became mates, how did it happen etc? A Turian and Human relationship is a rare and special thing as many still remember the first contact wars. I hope you get better soon and wish you a long and happy life with Vetra._

[Keri has attached a 40 question long questionnaire. Flagging all questions that are deemed ‘inappropriate’.]

** Log #13 (40 days post incident) **

_You’re going to wake up right? Suvi is trying to distract me by teaching me the ancient Human art of Origami. So far I’ve learned how to fold a crane and a frog. She’ll teach me how to fold a rose next. I’m planning on folding one for each day I miss you. That means I need to get started ASAP, the roses won’t fold themselves._

_V_

** Log #14 (41 days post incident) **

_I visited Ryder Prime today. It’s beautiful. Lush forests and trees stretching as far as the eye can see. A settlement has already been set up there. I also took the Nomad out for a spin, Kallo joined me, he was prattling on and on about the waterfalls. ‘Just like Surkesh’ he would keep commenting. Anyway, I think I found the perfect spot for our wedding. The monolith is visible in the distance and there’s a lake behind the clearing. The clearing itself is gorgeous too. Flowers of all colours cover the grass and the grass is cool and soft._

_I love you, but I need you to wake up. Please. It hurts._

_Vee_

** Log #15 (48 days post incident) **

_This is all my fault. I should have kept an eye on the Hydra. If I had, you wouldn’t be in a coma. You wouldn’t be lying in a hospital bed, hooked up to all these machines._

** Log #16 (49 days post incident) **

_You’re dying. The doctors say your brain is shutting down, section by section. SAM is trying desperately to keep you alive but… he’s losing. I had to watch you slowly shrink into the bed, more and more wires cluttering your skin. I’m losing hope. Say something, I’m giving up on you._

_V.N_

** Log #17 (50-56 days post incident) **

[Collating messages from this time period for ease of access]

Cora

_Ryder, I know I can be a bitch sometimes. I know our friendship is purely work related but I want you to know I’m not a complete dick. I need you to wake up. I need you to grin that silly grin of yours and join me in sending the Kett back to whatever hell they came from. I need to see that confident swagger again, hear your childish whoops of joy as you kill another man, and feel your biotics pushing against my own in battle. I need you to get back on your feet, drag yourself back to the Tempest. Because that…that is where you belong._

Liam

_Hey, Ryder. I know you're still in there, still fighting. Vetra’s not doing well. Your condition is… well it’s taking a toll on her, on all of us. You gotta wake up. People need you, Vetra needs you. She’s falling apart. She pretends everything is going well but I can tell she’s given up. She’s hardly sleeping, refusing to eat. She spends every free hour by your side. I can’t believe I’m saying this but I can see her bones through the thin cotton shirt she wears. I think it’s one of yours. We need you Ryder, you’re our Shepard. Without you we are just lost sheep, Vetra especially._

Jaal

_Sara Ryder, even though you are a Human from a galaxy away, you are my family. I cannot do anything for you but I promise, should your light extinguish, Vetra will have a place in the Ama Darav bloodline. Stars and skies light your way Pathfinder, may you find peace among the stars._

Drack 

_Kid, you’re a tough one. No point telling you how much we need you. The white coats are trying to get Vetra to cave. They’re gonna unplug you. Too much drain on resources. I told them to shove their [expletive removed] up their collective cloaca’s and assholes. Jaal’s right, we’re family. I’ll be damned if I’m gonna let them kill you after you saved their sorry asses. So yeah, you can smirk if you want, you got your own personal Krogan bodyguard and I ain’t budging an inch._

Suvi

_Vetra’s done with the roses. I wish you could see them. She stuck them all over the room, the floors, the ceiling. Even the vents have roses stuck in them. I licked another rock, no reaction this time. I guess Meridian really fixed everything. Elsie still demanded I subject to a full physical. She spent a little too long staring at my face. Could be she was just scanning me with her glasses. Ohmygosh! Do you think she likes me? I think she likes me!_

[EDIT] _She flirted with me! Or at least I think she did…she also flirted with Liam. Do you think she’s Bi? Hopefully she swings more my way. Shit! Ignore the last part._

Kallo

_Ryder,_

_Nexus reports 100% viability of all colonised planets. Food, water and energy production are all steady. We can finally start to wake families. I can see my daughter again. Thank you Ryder. I hope the procedure between you and Vetra succeeds. The joy of having a child knows no bounds. I hope you will have a chance to share that joy… but SAM says your cognitive functions are deteriorating. After nearly 2 months without any improvement, the Doctors are ready to classify you as brain dead. Truthfully, your odds don’t look good. Should you pass on into the void, I want to say it was an honour to be your Pilot. I wouldn’t have traded it for anything else._

Peebee

_I heard how bad you were, acting all heroic and jumping in front of the bullet, saving the damsel in distress. Well you didn’t finish the job numbnuts! The hero gets the girl afterwards! She doesn’t drop into a coma for 2 months! But that’s what you did. Real dick move there Ryder. So you gotta wake up before your damsel either runs off with someone else or actually ends up killing herself._

** Log #18 (57 days post incident) **

_3 days left. Three days until I have to make the decision to let you die or to keep you alive. I… I can’t make that decision Ryder. Please wake up. Please, I’m begging you now. I need you to wake up._

_Please wake up._

_Wake up._

** Log #19 (58 days post incident) **

_Sara please! Seeing you lying there is killing me. I can’t take this anymore._

** Log #20 (59 days post incident) **

_I’m sorry. I’ve told them to let you go. Tomorrow, they will disconnect you. I’m sorry. I can’t take the pain anymore. I can’t bear having you so close and not having you. I pray you will forgive me._

** Log #21 (60 days post incident) **

_I’m sorry._

** Sara POV **

The first sense that comes back to me is smell.

The smell of sterility. _I’m in a hospital. That means I failed to block the rockets. God I hope Vetra is all right._

The second is touch.

Leathery rough skin of a hand shifts in my grip. _Vetra’s fine. Thank God! She’s here next to me. If that’s the case, then I must’ve taken the brunt of it. Well, at least I’m still alive._

Sound fades in, a multitude of beeping assaulting my ears.

Soft, sharp intakes of breath follow. Small whimpers pierce my thoughts. _She’s crying. Why is she crying?_

I try to open my mouth to say something, _anything!_ But all that comes forth is a ghost of breath over my lips. I try again. Another breath. _Shit._

Switching tactics, I try to move my fingers. I manage to twitch one finger and the soft crying stops instantly.

 _“Sara?”_ Vetra’s voice suffuses into me, filling me with new vitality. _God, I’ve missed you._

_I’m here! I’m awake! Why can’t I speak? I can’t see either?_

“Sara?” Her grip tightens, squeezing my hand harder. I try to return the gesture.

“Cognitive functions restored. Sara is waking up.” I hear SAM announce over the comm. His voice like the thunder of God, hammering against my eardrums. Oversensitive from disuse.

I hear rapid footsteps, squeaking of rubber on linoleum floor and a multitude of voices. Vetra’s hand leaves mine and I can hear her being dragged away, thrashing and screaming. A loud crash resounds through the room. She must’ve knocked over something.

I feel the warm band of light move down my body. _They’re scanning me._

A human hand takes the place of Vetra’s. _Female._ The hand’s voice comes next.

“Ryder, can you hear me? Squeeze once for yes and twice for no.”

I squeeze once.

“Can you see?”

I squeeze twice.

“Okay, that’s fine. It’s a possible side effect of the coma. Can you speak?”

I try to talk but again all that escapes is an expulsion of air. I squeeze twice.

“Okay, that’s okay. You’ve been in a coma for two months. We were supposed to unplug you today. You’re okay. She’s okay!” The voice drifts off, the hand following it. Vetra’s familiar hide once again greets my palm, her voice a cascade of pure Turian that my translator cannot parse. The anguished tone and pain in her harmonics conveys their meaning all the same. _Two months? I’m so sorry Vetra. It must have been hell for you. Oh God, I hope you didn’t blame yourself for this. It was my fault. I didn’t keep an eye on the mech when I cloaked._

“You’re back! You’re actually back! DON’T YOU EVER DO THAT TO ME AGAIN!” She screams at me, her hard head bumping hard into my forehead, lips crashing to mine.

“Don’t you ever leave me alone again.” She whispers into my ear, teeth gently leaving indents on my mark.

_Never._

_Never again._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you didn't catch the reference, Elsie little is a shout out to Elsie Hughes in Westworld. I felt she didn't get near enough screen time. I hope they develop her character more in the next season.  
> YES I KNOW IT CAME OUT IN 2016!!! I was busy and couldn't devote 10 hours of time to watch it all. I binge watch shows okay? I literally spend a whole day watching one series.


	7. Interview

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I took down the chapter I posted on Saturday because it didn't fit with what I had in mind. Sorry about that. Anyway, I rewrote the ending portion of it and I think it gives me a better launching point for the next arc. As always, I look forward to your comments and any prompts/ ideas you want to see are greatly appreciated. Special thanks to White_Tiger that pointed out the magnificent f-up I did with the previous iteration of chapter 7. Hopefully, this time it fares better.

** Chapter 7 **

** Interview **

** Sara POV **

My sight returns slowly, blurry at first but getting sharper each second. As if someone was turning a focusing knob. Vetra’s handsome face resolves from the beige smear in front of my eyes. The doctors seem to back off at the obvious tender moment between us, staying back and monitoring me from a distance. Soon, all the med-techs leave the ward entirely, their work completed.

I run my hand along her jawline, pausing at the rounded stub where the lower half of her right mandible is missing. _I failed to protect you._ Her three fingers gently cup mine, drawing my gaze to her eyes. They are full of raw emotion, her harmonics are set in a permanent low thrum of joy. Reverberating through my chest and filling me with happiness. She pulls my face closer and we kiss again. Slow, tentative and full of as much love as either of us can manage to squeeze in before our need for air forces us to part.

“I missed you so much.” Vetra says, hugging me as close as she can, which is a little awkward because she’s bending down _and_ over the railing of the hospital bed I’m in. “I missed you too.” I reply but my voice comes as nothing but a varied exhale of air. Vetra notices immediately. _Of course she does._ Her expression turns worried as mine turns fearful.

_{SAM, why can’t I talk?}_

_[Your laryngeal cortex was damaged in the explosion. I am unable to countermand the damage. I’m sorry Sara, you will be unable to speak.]_

_{NO! This can’t be happening! How do I? How do I… I need to tell her I love her! I need to! I need to ask her to marry me! How do I…I need to…}_

As if reading my thoughts, two strong arms wrap themselves around my shoulders. I wordlessly sink deeper into the embrace, letting my feelings go. I start shaking softly at first, soaking Vetra’s shirt. Soon, I’m crying deep chest-heaving sobs, letting the pain consume me. “There we are, let it all out. I know… I know… They said it could happen.”

_[I can attempt to design an implant that can read your speech centre and translate the electrical signals to produce sound. I can also approximate your voice to allow you to speak again… Unless you want me to route your voice through the station’s speakers?]_

_{No, I think… I think the I-implant will be… just fine.}_

“Hey now, that’s it, let it out… Let it out but stay with me ok? I-I need to show you something. Something that may make you very angry at me.” Vetra slides out a datapad from a basket at the side of my bed and passes it to me. Her posture immediately changes to a more upright, defensive one. “I’ll understand if you…if you hate me after this.”

I wake the pad and see that there are 21 recorded messages. I start reading. Each message filling me with more and more sadness and anger at what this beautiful woman was forced to endure. Sadness at how each message showed a glimpse into the pain she felt, anger at myself for causing her pain. _If only I had paid more attention…taken out the mech sooner… got to her side sooner. No this isn’t your fault dammit! Its mine! All mine!_

I wish I could scream, shout at this woman, holler myself hoarse and then kiss her senseless, but I can’t. So I just settle for kissing her senseless, kissing away the horrors she had to face for 2 months. At first she resists, going so far as to tug away from me twice before I roughly grab onto the ridges of her crest and hold her there so I can kiss her.

She pulls away from my kiss, moving back so that she’s out of my reach, eyes wide, one and a half mandibles spread in shock. “You’re not mad? I-I gave up on you. I was ready to let you go. Do you know how horrible I am? I was ready to kill my mate! I was ready to let them pull the plug on you! You were in a coma for only 2 months and I…I was ready to let my mate die. I was ready to let you die! Don’t you get it? Why aren’t you mad at me? Why aren’t you…?”

I don’t give her the chance to finish her sentence, I hoist my body away from the pillow and grab her wrist, tugging with all my might and managing to bring her neck close enough to my mouth. I may not be able to speak but I know how to communicate with my mate. I lick at her mark, leaving little nibbles on her flesh.

 ** _I’m not mad. I’m just so very, very sorry you had to go through that with me. I know how bad it can get. Why do you think I turned to drink? I didn’t have you at the time and Scott was… well he was just as bad as me. Trust me Vetra, I know how it feels. I’m so sorry…_** I gasp in surprise as I realise that my thoughts are appearing on the datapad.

_SAM is this what I think it is?_

_[Yes pathfinder, I am using my connection to your brain to present your thoughts as text. It is a temporary measure until the implant can be fabricated.]_

“Sara! You’re talking! To me…” I once again worry at her mark with my teeth, showing my love for her in her culture’s purest form.

**_I forgive you Vetra. I… I fully understand why you did what you did… how you felt. Scott was only under for less than a month and I was already so depressed I turned to the bottle._ **

“How can you forgive me so easily?”

**_Because I love you. You don’t have to be the guardian anymore. We’re two halves of a whole. I completely understand why you felt like you couldn’t go on. You couldn’t continue living without me, neither can I without you Vetra; I know what that’s like. Scott is another half of me, remember how you would find me awake at night in the mess?_ **

“Yes, you were always drinking tea. The conversations we had was another reason why I fell in love with you. You were always so emotional and open.”

**_Yeah well… I wasn’t drinking tea. I was drinking a special concoction that forced me to sleep. It also dulled my brain and made me far more emotional than usual. I just… couldn’t sleep with the image of Scott lying in that bed. Those were the nights that I didn’t get blackout drunk just to fall asleep. I know that pain Vetra and I’m sorry for putting you through that. I should be the one begging forgiveness. NOT you._ **

Her face is caught in a thoughtful albeit serious look before she decides to let the matter rest for now. She carefully climbs into bed beside me, jabbing my ribs with her spurs a couple times as she wiggles into position. The bed is clearly not meant for two but I rather enjoy the feeling of her leathery skin flush against my own.

“I love you too. Can we agree to forgive each other and never speak of this again?”

**_Of course. Soooooooooo…_ **

“Soooooooo?” She echoes, her mandibles pulling into a smile.

**_Did you get my message? If it’s too fast, we can take our time with the other thing but I think I really want to marry you. Having you by my side for the last year and a half was-is the best time of my life._ **

“I got your message.” She kisses my hand tenderly, clasping it with both her hands, eyes shining with happiness.

 ** _Be my wife?_** I smile shyly at her.

“Yes.” She trills, her second voice shouting her happiness to the world.

My joy cannot contain itself and I burst into silent tears, Vetra follows suit and we embrace tightly, crying and weeping with unbridled joy.

 _“ **I will marry you.** ” _We say in unison.

 

=====

After countless tests over three days to make sure I hadn’t suffered any additional brain damage, the techs seemed satisfied enough and cleared me for the next step in my recovery, the physical aspect. I lunged at the opportunity. Having wasted away for the last two months in bed, I was looking forward to finally getting to move again.

Sitting in a wheelchair and being pushed by your girlfriend is awesome. Why? Because when you have a 7 foot tall _Turian_ as a girlfriend, people tend to be more inclined to avoid head on interaction. Not to mention that said girlfriend literally ripped a mech to pieces with her bare hands.

Taan had said that the Tempest was to be returned to my command upon my certification of being fit for duty, to the relief of Scott. My brother only took her out twice during my stay in the hospital, once for some scouting work and the other to transfer supplies. Scott was no coward, he would fight to the death if it meant his loved ones were in danger but the sight of blood made him sick. He would much sooner pick you off with a sniper rifle from two kilometres away than prick you with a toothpick.

So far, our luck had held, with no sign of Keri or the other reporters. Hopefully, that luck held and we wouldn’t have to entertain the horde of reporters that would no doubt be clamouring all over me once the news got out.

 _Physical Rehabilitation. Oh boy am I looking forward to having_ _a bunch of people in white coats being all encouraging to me and saying that I should take it easy. As if I don’t know my own limits._

As expected, the moment I’m pushed through the door, the medical techs light up in excitement. _Here we go._

“Pathfinder! We’re so glad to see you here…” I tune out the rest of their excited nonsense. “Whenever you’re ready, step up to the poles and start walking. Because you were out for two months, we expect your muscles to have weakened. The rails are for safety you understand.”

 _Bitch I was born ready._ I push myself out of the chair, the techs immediately start tapping furiously on their datapads. I take one experimental step forward and nearly lose my balance. I swing out my arms, flapping them in the air a couple times and manage to recover my footing. I shoot Vetra a glance communicating an ‘I told you so’.

“Be careful! You could hurt yourself…” again, I tune out the med-techs and focus on putting one foot in front of the other. Shuffling slowly along, I make it to the bars. My legs are definitely weaker than I’m used to. They feel lethargic and too heavy. Exactly the same as they do after leg day. However, my right foot is numb. Like _really_ numb. It feels as if it only has half the nerve endings in it, like I sat on it too long and now a portion of the _feeling_ is gone. At last, I make it to the end of the bars and risk turning around to face Vetra, taking my hands off the rails and slowly turning around, I smile at her.

Her face is a mixture of sadness, guilt and happiness. Her eyes are wetter than normal, the extra moisture shining in the bright florescent light. I can tell she’s trying to hold her emotions in, hiding behind her shell of reputation and _Turian-ness._ I make my way back to her, my strength returning with every step. At last, I can feel all my body parts again. Feel my legs pushing back against the ground but I also feel tired. My body not used to expending the energy to move after 2 months. I know in time I’ll be better than ever but that time can’t come fast enough.

Taking the last few steps at the speed of nearly a jog, I swing my arms up and catch her neck. Just as my legs give out on me. Of course, she expertly catches me and pulls me close, nuzzling my hair. “I’m so proud of you.” She coos to me. Helping me sit down in the chair, she once again takes the handles.

“Muscle degradation is not as severe as projected. Additional stay in hospital not required. Reinstating Pathfinder Ryder to active duty. Recommend Pathfinder continue with daily exercise to rebuild lost muscle.” A Salarian med-tech says to us, his eyes still trained on the readouts his datapad is feeding him.

She pushes me back to my ward, pulling me into a storage locker once just as a Turian journalist comes tearing round the corner. Vetra nearly gives away our position when she giggles at the man’s confused harmonics.

When we make it back to the ward, I’m nearly ready to just fall asleep right there. Vetra scoops me up in her arms, carrying me to the bed. I hug her neck and breathe in her scent, warm, smooth and metallic. The warmth of her body and the soothing rocking motion of her gait ensures that I fall asleep in her arms even before my head touches the pillow.

=====

** Vetra POV **

I can tell Ryder is asleep, her breathing deep and even, chest rising and falling naturally for the first time in months. I run my talons through her long brown hair, two months and it has now grown past her shoulders, falling gracefully like a waterfall. I start from the roots of her hair and slowly drag my fingers downwards. She shifts into my touch, still deep in sleep and I unconsciously begin to purr. I purr not the usual purr of love or lust but one of comfort and content. The kind usually reserved for soothing a fledgling to sleep.

I’m not tired. Not physically at least, but the emotional drain on me causes my eyelids to droop.

Her message floats into my thoughts again. _She wants to have children with me._ I smile softly to myself as I continue stroking her hair until can bear the pull of slumber no longer and join her in sleep.

_Soft talons crawl their way up my cowl, their blunt edges catching on the ridges of my cowl. Soft fuzziness tickles my nose. High pitched squeals of delight ring in my ears. I finally crack open my eyes to see the bright smile of our daughter. Her green and blue eyes staring into my own, mandibles clicking in happiness. Her snow-white face plates have small tufts of light brown fuzz in-between them. Soft white down covers the rest of her body._

_A weight drops onto the bed next to me, jostling the little girl on my chest causing her to launch into a fit of giggles and fall off her perch, right into the arms of her mother._

_“Good morning my darling princess!” Sara laughs, lifting the girl high into the air. Our daughter kicks and screams happily. Spinning around on the bed, my girls fall backwards onto me, their momentum knocking air from my lungs. I join in the giggles while our daughter climbs her mother’s hair. Five stubby fingers gripping tight onto brown strands, heaving herself upwards. She peeks out from under a curtain of hair_ _, eyes searching for me. She giggles again when her gaze finds mine._

_“Mama!” She shrieks, letting go of Ryder’s hair and tumbling back into my lap. Her hardening plates protecting her from the worst of the bumpy ride down._

_Her five fingers again fumble over my plates as she tries to snuggle into the warm crevice in between my cowl and neck._

_“Vee? Vee! Vetra!” Ryder urgently shakes my arm, pointing out the window where thousands of Kett ships have emerged from FTL. Their guns visibly rotating, aiming at the Nexus. Hellfire spits forth from their barrels, screaming through space, painting a brilliant starburst against the black canvas of the void._

_Violent rumbles shake our apartment, sending The Vase crashing to the ground, shattering it into a million fragments. I tuck my family under my embrace, facing my back to the onrushing flames. I will protect my family till the very last._

_Blinding heat and light burn through my plating faster than my brain can register the pain._

I jolt awake to Ryder shaking my arm, looking at me with worried eyes.

I quickly open a channel on my Omni-tool for her. Immediately text spews forth. Her worried words sprawling over the screen.

“I'm fine, I'm fine. Just a bad dream,” I assure her. “Go back to sleep. I'm okay.” _I’m not okay… what was that?_

 ** _Sorry can't sleep. I need to pee._** **_Help me?_**

“Of course.” I say as I scoot off the bed, helping her into the wheelchair. She stares at her face in the mirror once she's done with her business. She lets her fingers travel upwards, over the hexagonal burn marks on her eyelid and nose, scratching over the white fragments of metal fused into her brow. _Should I tell her?_

**_M-my face. I-I…_ **

“I’m sorry, some of your armour was fused too deep into your skin. The scarring _can_ be removed with treatment bu-“

**_Are you kidding me? I look even more badass now!_ **

“Umm… Yeah! Sure! Much more badass!” I say enthusiastically, bending down and wrapping my arms around her shoulders. She twists her head around and playfully licks my nose, bursting into silent giggles. _I can’t let that happen._ Ever _._

I wheel her back to the bed and reach for the sheets, preparing to tuck her back in. She taps my arm, indicating that she wants to speak. I enable the channel and route it to my visor so that I can wheel her with both hands.

 ** _I’m hungry. Can we go to the canteen? I haven’t had solid food in months._** She fixes me with big round eyes, begging like a cat.

I let out a huff, “You don’t need to do that. I’d do anything for you.” I wheel her towards the door, pausing only to access the locks.

** Suvi POV **

Elsie’s tongue is hot and fluid as she forces her way into my mouth, a thigh pressing insistently between my legs at the same time. My thoughts get hazy as my head spins. I nearly lose grip of the small metal cylinder containing Ryder’s new implant. I covertly slip the metal into my pocket, using my now free hand for other more _pressing_ matters. I squeeze one of Elsie’s firm, petite breasts and she moans into my mouth.

The door to Ryder’s room hisses open and I quickly shove Elsie off me. My hands smoothing down my rumpled shirt. Elsie does the same, fixing her glasses.

The doctor coughs awkwardly, making both our faces even redder. “I…um…I-I need to be somewhere…” She mutters and flees from the scene, lab coat flying behind her as she runs. Exposing her cute ass to my appreciative gaze. _Her ass is just as tight as Ryder’s._

“Oh, right… I was supposed to give you this.” I snap back to the present and bend down to pass Ryder the cylinder, not daring to meet her gaze. I make the mistake of looking up when I stand, right into her eyes. “Um…” I swallow nervously, her gaze is inquisitive. Right eyebrow raised in a question.

“It’s er… it’s the implant SAM designed for you. It will allow you to speak again.” Her eyebrows wiggle, one after the other and I finally realise what she’s asking. I remember to enable my Omni-tool when she gestures to her arm.

**_So... You and Elsie huh?_ **

“And um… Liam...sometimes.” I reply, blushing even harder.

 ** _Well that’s… interesting._** Ryder says and I can see the cogs in her head grinding, thinking all manner of unclean thoughts.

“We’ve sorted it out… and um… slept together a couple of times. Elsie and I… are together…kinda? Liam joins us sometimes. I-I never thought I would have feelings for a guy but I do. He's like a really good friend that I trust enough to share my body with, but my heart still belongs to Elsie. ”

**_As long as it doesn’t affect your effectiveness as a crew and you’re all consenting, by all means; just… don’t let there be a little Liam running about._ **

“Yes, of course.” I turn tail and flee in the direction of my girlfriend and away from the sight of the Pathfinder.

** Sara POV **

**_Well…that happened._ **

“Huh, yeah… I guess it did.” Vetra shakes her head, chuckling. “I guess that leaves Cora as the only straight woman on board the Tempest.”

 ** _Come on, I’m starving. Onwards to food!_** Vetra laughs and nips at my ear before gathering her legs and bounding forward in long, powerful strides. Sending us rocketing down the hallway.

=====

Thankfully, the canteen is devoid of life, we make our way to the dispensers and choose our meals. Grabbing the burning hot portion from the machine, I drop it onto the tray on my lap and slowly wheel myself back to the table where Vetra is waiting for me, already struggling with the impenetrable packaging. She finally gives up and uses a talon to violently rip the packaging open, spilling half the contents onto the table. She sheepishly collects the spilled chunks of meat and scoops it back into the remains of her packaging, shooting me a _look. **I didn’t see anything.**_ I mouth to her.

The reheated ration tastes as good as any goddam Michelin star restaurant. The flavour of the stasis locked food bursting on my tongue. I try to hold in a moan as I take another mouthful of the delicious sauce laced shrimp. The light, crunchy meat quickly being swallowed down.

“I can never get used to seeing you humans eating bugs.” Vetra says, visibly shivering as I take another shrimp between my teeth and crunch off the body, swallowing the meat whole this time. Silently, I’m glad that I can speak through text as I reply Vetra even with the shrimp sliding down my throat.

**_Shrimps are not bugs! They’re aquatic! They live in the sea and they taste amazing!_ **

“They’re just gross things with so many legs. How do you even get over that? They have like a hundred legs all squirming in different directions.”

**_Well you’re eating a Lanura a freaking lizard-bat thing! Like, why would you even think of eating such a thing? Don’t you guys keep them as pets or something?_ **

“We do, but these were raised specifically for eating.”

**_Oh my god! You don't just eat pets. It's like against the law or something. Like morally wrong._ **

“These are _not_ pets. They’re farmed animals specifically bred for eating!” Vetra huffs in annoyance, mandibles clicking to her face.

**_Fine. Just eat your damn food. I don't want to argue with you now._ **

“Who said I was even arguing?” Vetra sighs in exasperation, crossing her arms over her chest. Her brow plates bunch together slightly. “Wait Ryder, didn't Suvi give you your speaking implant? We should test it out now.”

I hum in consent and quickly activate the implant. “Hello, testing, testing, 1…2…3 how is this?”

“It's… it's actually pretty good, it's almost exactly like your real voice just that your mouth doesn’t move so it kinda looks weird… yeah.” She kisses me softly, “I was afraid I would never hear it again. I think it just needs some calibrations, it's not 100% you yet, but it'll get there.”

I hug Vetra tightly, whispering all manner of sweet nothings into her neck, thanking god for the godsend of SAM without whom, I would never get the chance of speaking to Vetra or _anyone_ for that matter, ever again.

Suddenly, Vetra tenses up under me, I immediately jerk my head up to avoid getting a mouthful of cowl. “What is it?” I ask, pressing a kiss to the soft membrane of her cowl. She opens her mouth to answer but her reply is cut off by an excited squeal of “Pathfinder!”

“Great, let me guess…” I roll my eyes and turn my head around. “Yeah, it’s Keri…and she brought a friend.” Vetra notes as her eyes fall upon the same Turian that had chased us this morning.

“Shit! Go! Go! Go!” I shout to Vetra, unlocking the brakes on my wheelchair so she can start running us out of the canteen the moment her hands touch the handles.

We fly past people so fast they only register as blurs of white in my vision. Vetra’s boots thump loudly on the floor, I grip onto the handrails of my wheelchair as she flings us around a corner, nearly crashing into another Turian.

“Sid!”

“Vetra!”

Sideria’s mandibles flare wide in surprise. “Ryder? You’re awake? Since when?”

“A couple days ago.” I reply, glancing behind us. I see Keri and the other Turian sprinting towards us. “Shit, they’re still following us.”

“Quick! In here!” Sid says, ushering us through an unassuming door, straight into a maintenance turbolift. The lift takes off with a whoosh.

“Heh, we lost them.” Vetra pants, hunched over with hands on her thighs.

“SOOOOOOOO… which one of you is pregnant? That’s why you’re running right? The rumours are true?” Sid blurts out. The younger Turian has been hopping from foot to foot the entire ride.

“NO! I’m not...” I begin.  
“She’s not…” Vetra protests.  
“We’re not…”

“We just want to avoid the press for now.” We finally say together.

“So I’m not gonna have a nephew to take care of?”

“Nope.”

“Awwww, I was so looking forward to that. I thought you two would have tried by now. I mean you’re already mates.”

“We were going to but then Eos happened.” I reply.

“We’ve decided to hold off on the kids until after we get married. Like a proper Human wedding with dresses and cake and champagne and…” Vetra interrupts with a raised finger, an oddly Human gesture she must have picked up from Cora. “Don’t forget the Turian aspects as well.”

“Right. Didn’t forget that. Ceremonial scarves and swords, cutting of hands and blood-bonding. See, I didn't forget.” I smile up at her.

Sid squeals in excitement. “So when is it? When's the wedding?”

“Um… we haven't decided _yet._ ” Vetra replies for me, fiddling with her fingers.

“Oh…huh. Okay, we’re reaching soon. We have to go up some stairs so you’re going to have to carry Ryder. I'll handle the chair.” Sid says as the lift begins to slow. The door hisses open and Vetra scoops me up into her strong, loving arms.

Vetra is obviously out of breath by the time we reach the top of the four flights of stairs. “Out of breath are we? It usually takes a lot more than that to tire you out and I would know.” I tease her, giving her a sexy smile to let her know that I clearly mean the jest in _that_ way.

“You’re just heavier than I thought.” She complains, hot breath washing over my face.

“Hey I'm only 64 kilos probably even lighter now. With your Turian strength, it should be like lifting a feather. You’re three times stronger than a Human anyway.”

“Well I… I'm not as strong as I used to be…” she says, turning her head away from me. “Right. Sorry I forgot. But hey, as soon as I'm back in my feet, I'm gonna whip you back into shape. You’ve been taking it far too easy for the last two months soldier!” I say to her in my best impression of a drill sergeant, eliciting a dry unamused laugh from her.

“What if I want you to whip me in another infinitely more _pleasurable_ way?” she grins.

“Wait. Are you serious?” I ask, mouth agape.

“What if I am?” her grin widens, revealing the front row of her needle sharp teeth.

“Then I’d tell you that I’ll gladly give you what you want.” I lick a trail up her neck and slowly drag my tongue over the scarred remains of her mandible. Her arms tense slightly under me. I look into her green eyes. A flicker of fear passes through the sea of green for just a moment.

I press feather-soft kisses to her mandible as the maintenance hatch opens, to reveal a huge crowd of people and a hornet’s nest of cameras all flying about capturing as much footage as their OSDs can store.

Keri stands at the forefront of the throng of reporters. Hands on her hips, camera drone at the ready and hovering behind her shoulder.

“At last the prodigal Pathfinder returns. We’ve been expecting you. I need a statement. Are you and Vetra Nyx officially mated? If so, what are your plans for the future seeing as you’ve just recovered from a coma?” She impatiently crosses her arms, tapping her foot as she waits for our reply. The other reporters are surprisingly staying behind her and waiting her turn. _So, reporters_ do _have honour after all._

“We mated…” I check my omni-tool with a few quick swipes. “Two months and 17 days ago. We haven’t registered our mating nor have we been married. We plan on having a full Human-Turian wedding and eventually…” I look at Vetra again, her face is set in a blank expression clearly trying to keep within the Turian discipline and also uphold her reputation of being a hard ass. “Eventually, we plan on having kids.” At this, her mandibles visibly loosen and I can tell that she's having trouble keeping her emotions in check.  _Good._  

Keri nods and steps away, letting the rest of the reporters flood us with questions. The assault of voices pushes us back towards the door. Sid unfolds the wheelchair and lets Vetra put me down on it.

A lithe Salarian female catches my attention. “Pathfinder! What do you have to say about your unusual relationship? Vetra is a Turian and a female at that. What qualifies her to be your mate?” An audible peppering of clicks clatters through the air as lenses snap to her.

Vetra stiffens visibly, obviously uncomfortable with the scrutiny being placed on her. I reach out and lace my fingers with hers. “Neither race, species nor gender matter to me. I fell in love with Vetra because of who she is. She is the most kind-hearted, loving and selfless woman I have ever met. Don’t be fooled by her hard exterior or her reputation because inside… inside she hides a heart of gold. I mated her because I wanted to give back some measure of love that this woman has poured out for me.” Vetra’s mandibles start to spread slowly. Her neck darkening with what could only be a blush.

“I mated her because she is lovely. She is perfect. She is simply beyond anything that a washed out recon specialist like me could ever hope to have. I mated her because this woman… this woman is my destiny.” Overwhelmed by emotions, she ducks down and gives me a deep kiss. “Thank you.” She whispers against my lips. “No, thank you.” I whisper back, sealing our lips once more.

“You mentioned having kids. Our sources say that you have been in contact with the SAM that discovered how to create a viable hybrid embryo. When are you going to have the procedure? The success rate has been calculated as being terribly low. Why are you still pursuing it with a _female_ Turian no less?” The Turian reporter finally gets his turn. I note that he has blue Palaven markings which accentuate his handsome blue eyes. His eyes flick to Vetra’s scarred mandible. “And do you still find Vetra visibly attractive even after the accident? In Turian culture, a scar is the deepest disrespect an enemy can inflict.” _So, you’re one of those alternative news people huh?_

“Well… to be honest, we haven’t really been thinking all that hard about it. We just know that having kids will be something we want eventually, damn the risk. As for scars… I think she looks just as attractive now. In fact, I kinda like it. Gives her a rougher, gruffer look befitting a mercenary. _My_ gruff looking mercenary. After all, what doesn't kill you makes you stronger.” I pull her down for another kiss, making sure to make as much wet smacking sounds as I can and pulling back so that the camera captures our tongues twining with each other and internally grinning at the grimace that crosses the features of the Turian reporter. _Suck on this asshole._

He leaves with a frown and a frustrated growl, one that is reciprocated by a warning growl from Vetra. The reporters shower questions on us and we answer as many as we can. Finally, the reporters exhaust their questions and leave us alone with the rest of the colonists and their never ending thanks and well wishes.

“Pathfinder Ryder.” Taan’s tinny, self-authoritative voice rings through the air. I fix him with my most withering stare as he ambles closer. “I see you are well.” Tapping a few commands into his omni-tool, he fixes me with his most politician like face. I resist the urge to punch him in the face.

“You have been reinstated as captain of the Tempest and are hereby authorised to continue your main directive in Heleus. I shouldn't need to remind you but please refrain from leading any ground missions until you are at peak form again. I wish you fortune and good luck in all your endeavours.” He finishes, nodding to Vetra and then at me.

“Please tell me you agree that Tann has the most punch-able conceited douchebag face ever?” I whine to Vetra once we leave the crowd behind and board the tram to the Tempest docking bay.

“Well at least we won’t be seeing him for a long while. Now that you’ve got the Tempest back.”

“God, I hope so.”

=====

“I’m supposed to be super happy, right? I should be touching the Tempest and looking reverently at it shouldn’t I. Make it more cinematic?” I push myself out of the wheelchair, pausing a moment to collect my senses and dispel the cloud of black that followed the movement.

“Aren’t you?” Vetra cocks her head as she folds the wheelchair and carries it up the ramp.

“I don’t know. Like, for me it feels like I took a really, really long nap. I don’t really feel like I missed all that much.” I lower myself to the floor and spread my arms and legs, opening and closing them like I’m making a snow angel. “Look ma, I’m a space angel.” I giggle, drawing an unamused snort from Vetra. “Honestly Vee, I’m just happy to be given the chance to get away from Taan and all his diplomatic bullcrap.

“I see you’re already enjoying yourself Ryder.” Cora laughs as she walks past us, carrying a box of something plant related I imagine. Sitting up, I happily smile at the rest of the crew as they make their way back onto the Tempest. Kallo strides past cracking his fingers, reciting things at a speed far too fast for me to catch. He doesn’t seem to register any of the rest of us as he makes his way to the bridge with single-minded focus.

Suvi and Elsie dash aboard with quick utterances of “Hey Ryder!” before they disappear into the med bay. _Either they discovered something new or they’re having a quickie._

Jaal silently grins at me as he walks past with two huge duffel bags of guns and armour judging from the weird outlines the contents are making in the fabric. Drack and Liam arrive last.

They’re lugging a huge container between them. I quickly scan the container. “Just some fresh food Ryder. Nothing to worry about.” Liam groans, changing his grip so he doesn’t drop the container.

“Uh huh. Then why am I detecting at least 50 kilos of explosives?” I quirk an eyebrow.

“Essential ingredients.” Drack counters smoothly. “I’ll need an inventory of that box. Particularly _that_ box.” Vetra crosses her arms, smiling a devilish smile at Drack. “Heh heh heh. Of course, you do.” The Krogan chuckles, lifting one massive arm to pat Vetra on the back nearly letting the container crush Liam in the process.

I stand up and prepare to close the hatch before I notice a roguishly handsome guy running towards the Tempest. His black and red armour and awkward half step jog jostling the neon blue duffel on his shoulder identifying him as only one person. My brother.

“Go! GO! We need to get the hell out of here!” He yells once he’s in hearing range.

“Why?” I yell back, instructing Kallo to prep the Tempest for an emergency cold-start.

“We need to escape before _she_ finds me!” He screams, jumping and grabbing onto the edge of the ramp. With Vetra’s help, we haul him up onto the ramp as the Tempest begins to lift off from the platform.

“Damn. That woman can run.” Vetra remarks as she catches sight of Lexi flying towards the Tempest like a cannonball. Cloaked in dark energy, Lexi screams through the air, headed straight for us.

“Scott…what did you do?” I turn to my brother. Narrowing my eyes at him.

“She wanted me to do a physical before I could join you guys. A PHYSICAL!!!”

“What’s the big deal? It’s just a physical.” Vetra shrugs nonchalantly. Scott jump tackles her to the floor, his gaze frenzied. “THEY HAVE HUGE FUCKING NEEDLES!!!” He screams, eyebrows twitching and arms flying about wildly.

“Scott. We talked about this. It’s just a tiny prick. They just need one blood sample. _ONE._ God knows how many I needed to go for once they removed my procreation blockers. Be thankful you’re male.” I swat his head, pulling him off my mate.

“Uhh. Shouldn’t the Tempest be space borne by now?” He says, pointing at the rapidly advancing wraith that used to be the ships doctor.

“We had to cold start. Kallo’s taking it slow so we don’t blow up.” I say.

“The whole point of a freakin cold start is that it’s much faster! The only effect it has is that over time, it damages the drive core!” He seethes.

“Sorry Mr engineer! Not my fault I failed quantum engineering!” I shout back at him.

“Oh yea, it was because of that fuckboy Carl, wasn’t it? I had to make ear defenders to drown out the racket you two made every night. He sticks out his tongue at me.

“You fuckin immature twit!” I grab at him and lose my balance at the same time. Only Vetra’s lightning quick reflexes keep me from tumbling out of the Tempest.

“SCOTT RYDER!” Lexi’s voice cuts through our conversation. She holds up a needle. The wind whipping her clothes about and the dirt smeared on her face makes her look like a mad scientist straight out of a horror film.

=====

“See it wasn’t so bad, was it?” I tease Scott once Lexi is done with him. The Asari and Elsie seem to be getting along well, swapping patient stories as they do their respective tests on Scott.

“Please never let them do that again.” He pleads with me. Face pale and lips quivering.

“Oh, don’t be such a baby! It was just one vial!”

“I’ll remember that the next time you come crying to me that there’s a spider in your room.”

“We’re in Andromeda now. No more spiders in anybody’s room because the spiders haven’t even been unfrozen yet. Hah!” I poke him in the shoulder as he sits up, rubbing his hand over the small patch of gauze they put over the pinprick hole in his arm.

“Sara, I hope you don’t mind but I will be retaking my place back on the Tempest. Apparently, my expertise is better utilised onboard the ship where the Human pathfinder and her Turian mate reside.” When I shoot her an inquisitive look, she adds on a smirk and a “I asked Taan if I could be put in charge of the hybridization project instead. He said yes.”

“Sure, you can stick around. With two Ryders on board, I’m sure we’ll find a use for your skills and I’m sure my brother would appreciate it if you gave him a _full_ physical.” I smirk sadistically as Scott’s eyes widen to inhuman proportions.

“Hm, I’m sure he would but I must speak to you about something.” Lexi’s tone suddenly turns serious as she leads me out of the med bay and into my room. “Vetra you might want to be here for this. What I have to say concerns you both.”

“What is it Lexi? You’re starting to worry me.” I cling to Vetra as she helps me settle onto the bed. Plopping down beside me, she idly swings her legs as Lexi paces nervously in front of us.

“You’re incompatible. The procedure… it won’t work.”


	8. Separation Pt I

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the long break in uploads. Poly is crazy busy and I hardly have any time at all to write. Luckily the June holidays are right around the corner. Hopefully I'll be able to finish this story arc by then. THEN I can finally move on to the fluffy one-shots revolving around the babs.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Me: Why can't these two ever catch a break? Dammit brain I just want them to be happy and have cute babies together!  
> Brain: NO. I still have plans for them. You’ll get your happy ending… In due time.

** Seperation I **

** Vetra POV **

“WHAT?” Sara screams. A pulse of dark energy rolling off her. Sparks of electricity jump between her fingertips as she balls her hands into fists and clenches them at her sides, trying to keep her rage from boiling over and destroying the med bay.

“The procedure won’t work. Not in its current configuration.” Lexi blurts out however she’s interrupted by another wave of dark energy. This time, it’s charged up enough that she has to cast a slight barrier around herself to avoid getting burned. I feel the solid heat wash over me, singeing my plates.

“WHAT THE FUCK DO YOU MEAN IT WON’T WORK! YOU WERE THE ONE THAT SAID IT WAS POSSIBLE!”

“I said it was possible, yes but I also said that it differed for everybody. The genetics must be able to create a stable hybrid. So far, all the simulations have failed. We need to try a different tact. Converting Vetra’s ovum into a sperm cell and then fusing it with your gametes has not produced a viable zygote.”

“So, you’re telling me we will never be able to have fledgelings? Because our genetics are incompatible?” I ask, sadness and anger lost on the Asari but any Turian within earshot would’ve been covering their ears and whimpering.

“You _will_ have children. I’ll make sure of it. It’s the least I can do. It’s just a matter of finding the correct combination that would work. I wonder…”

“What?” Ryder snaps out, voice trembling with barely supressed rage.

“Oh nothing, it was just a silly, random thought.” Lexi answers, clearly eager to get a snappy Ryder out of her med bay to avoid any physical complications.

“Those tend to work out for us. Spit it out Lexi.” I grumble, moving closer to Ryder and sliding my arms around her waist, pulling her close. She leans her head back into my chest. Her soft hair tickling my neck.

“How comfortable are you with using a sperm donor?” She asks us, causing my instincts to flare. “Someone else getting my mate pregnant? Never!” I growl back at her.

“No, no I meant you Vetra. I understand that you would want to have a child from your own blood. I was suggesting that we have Scott be your donor… and I must add that it is unadvisable for Ryder to carry. We have no idea how the child will actually turn out. Should the child inherit more Turian features, it could pose a greater risk to Ryder during birth.”

“Why a sperm donor?” Ryder asks, curiosity getting the better of her.

“It cuts down on a lot of problems with converting both your eggs into viable gametes that can fuse with one another. It’s a challenge weaving two completely opposite DNA structures together into a viable embryo. It’s even harder to do so when both gametes are female.” Lexi says. Her tone clipped and clearly unwilling to say more.

I swallow thickly, my throat constricting as I let Lexi’s words sink in. _Pregnancy. I never thought I would be faced with this._ I try to hide my conflicting feelings on being the carrier. On one hand, I’m overjoyed that the procedure has a higher chance of _happening._ On the other hand, I am terrified of the _possibility._ I glance at Ryder, taking in her wide smile and bright eyes. “Oooh! I’ve never seen a pregnant Turian before! This should be interesting.” Ryder whoops. Uncertainty and anger forgotten in an instant.

I slip my hands away from her waist and take off out of the med bay, head muddled, eyes unseeing as I head for the most comforting place I can think of. The pathfinder’s quarters.

=====

I step into the room, the doors gliding shut behind me. Absentmindedly palming the lock, I let my back collide with the wall, letting my thighs relax. Sliding myself slowly down the wall. _I can’t. I’m not ready. I want to be a mother but I’m not ready. I…I just can’t._

My attention snaps to the door as it hisses open, permitting the only other person who has the code to enter. “Vetra are you all right?”

“No! I’m not all right! I’m not ready to be a mother! I’m scared. I’m terrified of it! I don’t… I can’t lose y-” I fail to finish my sentence as all the feelings stored up over the last two months boils over. I desperately try to claw back my emotions, fighting them under.

But the bottled-up emotions are too much, too fast. I don’t know how to respond to them so I just cry as Ryder holds me. Her soft hands caressing and soothing away my physical pain. I follow her advice, letting all the pain out with my tears. _Why am I so weak? Why can’t I even control my own emotions? How can such a beautiful, wonderful woman love you when you are such a mess?_

My memories of spending day after day sitting in her room, holding her hand and begging her to wake up flash into my mind. I remember the loneliness, the pain, the sorrow and the regret. It all comes back to me again. The pain of seeing her waste away in that bed, the sorrow at causing the accident in the first place, the regret of not telling her how much I love her enough.

Another flashback assaults me, the memories of my childhood. Growing up being abused by my mother. Being sold as a slave at the age of 6. Having to bring up Sid all alone. The cold, hungry sleepless nights.

Ryder asks me if I want to talk about it and I agree. I tell her. I tell her _everything_.

I tell her my fears, my insecurities and how I’m terrified of the future.

She kisses my broken mandible, chipping off a small fragment of the insecurities I have. _She did say she liked my scars._ Ordinarily, a Turian with such obvious scars would be shunned from all society. Turians despise weakness and the most insulting thing is when an enemy was able to get the upper hand on you. Worse still when said enemy was able to leave a scar. Scars are a sign of incompetence, of failure.

 

** Sara POV **

Vetra is _crying_. Like, full scale meltdown crying. I drop to my knees, ignoring the pain that shoots up my joints as I wrap my mate in a tight hug. I don’t know what caused this outbreak of emotion, but I know that whenever Vetra shows this much emotion, it’s usually either because something exceptionally good or bad happened. Right now I’m hoping it’s something good.

“Vetra are you all right?” I ask her. Rubbing my cheek against her neck as I wipe away the tears that are threatening to fall.

“No! I’m not all right…” Vetra’s voice ripples against my chest and I can immediately tell that she’s sad. Sad and terrified of something. I hold her, rocking us slowly from side to side as she lets out whatever is bothering her.

“It’s okay, let it out. Some things can only be solved by having a good cry. I’m here. Just let it all out. I’m here…” I keep repeating a string of reassurances, telling her how I’m there for her, supporting her through anything and everything. About 10 minutes later, her tears have gone dry and she just leans against me, shaking intermittently.

“I-I’m s-sorry about that. I just… I just couldn’t take it.” She whimpers.

“Do you want to talk about it?” I ask. Deeply concerned at what triggered this episode.

“My mother. I…I need to tell you about my mother…” And she did. Vetra poured out her life story to me. She told me how her mother had treated them after their father disappeared.

How she had been kicked out of the ranks and turned to drugs and alcohol to cope. She told me how their mother would take out her frustrations and anger on them, abusing and hurting them every night. How the debts increased to the point that their mother sold them as slaves on Omega before using up the money and subsequently committing suicide.

“I’m scared Sara. I’m scared that I’ll turn into a monster like her. I don’t ever want to hurt our child. And I can’t lose you. I’m sorry but I’m just so terrified of the possibility that I might lose you. I’ve already almost lost you three times now. I can’t even think of having children when I’m not sure you will even come back to me at night.” She looks at me with a tearful gaze. “Does it make me selfish that I want to keep you to myself? That I want to hold off on having kids for a while?”

“No. No it doesn’t. You’re not being selfish at all. I completely understand Vetra. I might’ve been too excited about it. I never stopped to think if you would want kids too. I’m sor-”

“But I do! I want to have children with you. I want to so much that it hurts. But… I’m not ready yet. I’m still scared. Scared of losing you and… being a mother.” She bows her head and looks away, eyes focusing on the helmet I keep on my nightstand. My father’s helmet.

I grab her by the mandibles, forcing her to look at me. “Listen here Vetra Nyx. You were dealt a bad hand growing up. You hear me? You are not at fault _at all._ You are the kindest, loveliest, most bestest person I have ever met. You _are_ going to be a great mom when we eventually have kids and you don’t have to worry about me anymore. Like you said, I’ve already almost died three times. My luck can’t be that bad. Y’know, three times the charm and all that. Anyway, what I’m trying to say is… I’m here. I’m going to be here, _stay here_ forever, whether you like it or not.” I finish my rant with a smile as I descend on her lips, capturing them and pouring out my love.

“I love you.” She says in a small voice when we finally break for air.

“I know.” I reply. Pressing another small, chaste kiss to her scarred mandible, bowing my head and letting our foreheads touch. I wrap my arms around her neck, letting my fingers Bumping our foreheads together, I kiss her in the Turian way as I met my fingers trail over her crest. Her arms encircle my waist as she starts to vibrate softly. Her warm breath brushes over my cheeks, her sub vocals thrumming. I focus on the heat and texture of her face; on her bright green eyes burning as bright as the sun. Her smooth, cool cheek slides over mine as my fingers do the same to the heated, leathery skin of her neck. My heart beating faster and faster as each passing moment intensifies the intimacy of our position.

“Cuddle?” I whisper against the side of her neck, making sure to hum against her cowl, making sure my closest approximation of a Turian’s sub vocals goes directly into her version of an ear. She grunts her assent and efficiently moves us to the bed, dropping me gently onto the duvet causing me to giggle.

Joining me on the bed, she twines our lower halves together, our legs forming a complex harmony of alien body parts that fit perfectly together.

Her rough, dry tongue tickles the shell of my ear as she mouths a question against my skin. “What do you know about scenting?” her hot breath ghosts over my ear sending a zing of excitement straight to my molten core.

“It’s a, um… It’s a thing that Turian’s do when they like, like each other orsomthinglikethat hnnn?” my mumbles turn incoherent as she lets another hot puff of air roll down my neck, blowing away any possibility of intelligent thought from my severely overstimulated brain.

“Close enough.” She smiles, letting out a happy trill. Her subvocals ramp up a notch as the smell of leather, grease and a certain spicy muskiness intensifies. I lean into her neck and inhale the scent. The lovely, comforting scent that I associate only with _her._ The scent that I wish I could bottle up and keep it like a treasure. Her sub vocals get even louder. To the point that my useless Human ears can actually pick up the different sounds she is making. She has a sort of deep purr that only an extremely fat cat would make. You know, the kind said cats make after you rub their belly and they’re circling around your legs expressing their gratitude? Yeah that sound. Combine that with a less threatening version of the Predator clicking and the most melodious birdsong you’ve ever heard and you get a basic understanding of what I was hearing.

“What’s that sound? It’s beautiful.” I ask, mounting arousal dwarfed by wonder and curiosity.

Her smile is so full of pride and happiness that I feel my nose start to burn with the beginnings of a bout of happy tears. “It is the canticum spritus, the soul song.”

“It’s just…” I lose track of my words as I bask in the pure amazement of the chorus of sounds coming from deep within Vetra’s chest. “It’s like I can feel your emotions.”

“That’s…pretty close actually.” She eases my shirt off one shoulder so she can snuffle my neck. Her scent growing stronger. “Where did you learn it?” I ask, curious at how one could be thought such a complex and emotional song.

She laughs and gently boops my nose, “It’s not something that can be thought. The soul song is an instinctual expression of our deepest feelings and thoughts. It’s like an Asari mind meld, only ours uses pheromones and sounds instead of a neural bridge to communicate to our mates.”

“I’m missing out on a lot, aren’t I? Stupid, useless Human nose.” I grumble and pinch my nose. “It _is_ a shame really, but I like your little button nose.” Vetra smiles and purrs, flicking the tip of her long tongue over my nose.

“What does it say?” her smile grows even warmer as the croons and trills vibrate beautifully through the air. I pout at the fact that I cannot understand what she’s saying nor hear the full measure of the song. I bury my sadness by nuzzling into her neck where her scent is the strongest.

“Nothing much, just how lucky I am for having a woman like you as my mate and how you should totally be naked for the next bit.” She says, head dipping into my chest as I fling my shirt over my head and shimmy out of my pants at the same time. While she struggles to remove the half fabric, half metal contraption she calls clothes.

We move slow and sensual against each other like ribbons dancing in the wind. I don’t know how long we spend wrapped up in each other but it feels like I’ve spent an eternity with her, basking in the radiant light of her second voice and the smell of her. Of home. All the while, I am oblivious to the pure emotion she is pouring out for me simply because I am unable to experience it. I find myself drifting off to sleep, in the comforting embrace of the woman I love, surrounded by a chorus of her own making and the scent of home.

I can’t help but wonder if this is what it will be like once we are wed and have a family of our own as I let myself fall into the soft grip of sleep.

SAM’s voice abruptly wakes us, “Pathfinder, I apologise for the interruption but director Taan has requested your immediate assistance in a Kett related matter. Please report to the bridge for a full briefing.” SAM’s unapologetic, synthetic voice shatters the tender moment between us.

=====

** Unidentified Planet **

** Vetra POV **

From the moment we had left our quarters, Drax had been fixing me with his steely narrowed stare. His eyes boring a hole into my back and I knew exactly why. Ryder was absolutely _reeking_ of me.The other Humans and even Lexi were completely unaware of what was going on. Jaal’s reaction was the funniest though as he visibly recoiled at the smell and quickly apologised and stuttered out an excuse when Ryder raised an eyebrow.

The Mission was simple, deploy to the planet surface, recon the Kett base, gather as much information as possible and wait for extraction. The only thing different from normal is that Ryder wouldn't be joining us on this mission as she was still recovering. Thus, I would be going with Drack and Cora while Liam covered our backs with Jaal and Scott on overwatch. I know, we usually don't have so many people on a mission but this time was different.

The Kett base was massive. According to the orbital scans, it spanned nearly six kilometres of unyielding jungle. With more than 50 sub-levels, it really was a fortress to behold.

Creeping along the slick, moss covered rock was hard enough without irritating insects buzzing around my face, Drack simply huffed and sent a cloud of mosquitoes whining away from his face. “Must be attracted to the musk you put all over yourself and Ryder.” He grunted, clearly voicing his displeasure at having to smell the evidence of our lovemaking.

“Frankly I'm amazed the Kett haven't set off the damn alarm yet. I’d be able to smell you a mile away.” He continues, cocking his Ruzad and signalling to Jaal to move up. The Angaran scurries onwards, checking back with Scott for enemy movement. The male Version Ryder is currently lying prone on top of the Tempest, eye on his scope and finger on the trigger, ready to take out any target we mark for him.

Cora moves up and plants a det-pack on the door, priming the silent explosive. With a pop-hiss, the door was forced inwards, allowing us entry into the base. The two Guards at the door were quickly dispatched, barely even able to form a squeak before their brains were painting the bulkhead door. We advanced deeper and deeper into the base, clearing room after room of hostiles.

Finally catching sight of a console, I connect my armor to the terminal and let SAM do his thing.

“Connection established. Bypassing security, please stand by.” SAM’s voice comes from the console as plasma bolts pepper the area around my head, a couple sparking off my shields.

“We’ve got company!” Cora shouts, I hear an affirmative grunt from Jaal and he materialises in front of us, sinking his blade into the neck of a Kett soldier before rolling behind cover and taking potshots at the attackers.

“Cover me! Just a bit more!” I shout while ducking down behind a supply crate, my attention fixed on the progress meter. _Come on SAM, we don't have all day._

“I am working through an outdated system, connected to an alien terminal with alien language and architecture. Please stand by.” SAM’s perfectly sarcastic monotone came through the base speakers.

“I have gained control of the base airlock system. Closing all entrances to our current position.” The hatches slam shut, decapitating an unlucky Kett soldier.

“That won't hold them for long.” Jaal says, pointing to the small wisps of smoke already appearing at the seams.

“Um guys, we have a problem, the base…is moving.” Sara’s shocked voice comes over the Comm, followed by an equally shocked confirmation from her Brother.

“What?” We all shout in surprise.

“The base isn't a base it's a ship. Get out of there. GET OUT OF THERE NOW!” Ryder screams over the Comm, panic clear in her voice.

“Fuck fuck fuck! This way!” Cora shouts and curses as she leads us back out of the steadily rising ship. Her grunt of surprise is followed by a loud thud as she loses her balance and clatters to the floor just as a deep shudder ripples through the ship.

“GET OUT OF THERE NOW! The ship’s main thrusters just came online.” The sound of Sara scrambling out of the Tempest and into the Nomad is clearly heard over the Comm. “I'm coming Vetra, just hold on!”

Skidding around the corner, I see the ground disappearing through the breach we made in the door. “Shit, we have to jump.” The rapid footfalls of Kett soldiers rattled the ground like an army of ants. Boosting my shields, I ducked behind a chunk of door and drew their fire. “Go GO!” I spray the Kett with bullets, providing cover fire for the rest to escape. Cora and Jaal jump out first. Drax stays behind a little longer to blast a couple more Kett into oblivion.

“Go on kid, I'll be right behi…” a huge explosion rocks the ship causing Drax to stumble and fall out of the ship. “Drax!” I rush to the edge, seeing the Krogan free fall, using his jump jets to slow his fall. I prepare to leap off into certain nothingness. Just before an electrified bola wraps around my ankles and shocks the living daylights out of me.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm so sorry for doing this to you. WHY BRAIN? WHY!?


	9. Separation Pt II

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Pt 2 of this arc. I got one more chapter planned then we can finally have the big ceremony and move on to the more fun and light-hearted parts of the story. 
> 
> OK BRAIN?! WE'RE MOVING ON! NO MORE PAIN FOR THESE TWO OKAY?!! I want fluffs and happiness.  
> Myeh sure, whatever D4. You're not the boss of me.  
> Do we have a deal?  
> Whatever.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning for gory, very explicit imagery and Taan being such a dick I wish I could just reach through my screen and strangle his stupid neck.  
> Oh and quite a bit of exposition. I'm introducing a new alien race. That's why it took so long to plan this chapter OK? Plus who knew planning and shooting a short film was so much work.

** Separation II **

** No POV **

Sara scrambles into the Nomad, completely disregarding the fact that she’s dressed in nothing but comfy shorts and a strawberry pink camisole. Screaming into the Comm for Vetra to get the hell out of dodge as she pushes the Nomad to its absolute limits.

“ _Cora and Jaal have cleared the enemy ship. Still so sign of Drax or Vetra._ ” Scott relays to her.

“ _I don’t care what you have to do. Keep the damn ship from taking off, my mate is still on board!_ ” she shouts at her brother. “ _Vetra just hold on! I’m coming!_ ”

Meanwhile, Scott has relocated to a bluff overhanging the abyss that the monster ship rose from. Unslinging his rifle, he snaps on additional bits of salvaged tech that hang off the main weapon by nothing but thin, exposed wires of every colour in the spectrum.

“ _I’ve got one shot Sara, tell me where to put it._ ” Scott says, checking his sight and charging up his rifle. “Put it in the engines. I need the ship to slow down so I can get to Vetra.”

“ _Got it, shot away._ ” He confirms as a bolt of white hot lightning bursts forth from the barrel of his gun. Hitting with the impact of a ship based accelerator cannon, slicing clean through three engines, the ship starts to list dangerously to one side, thick billowing smoke trailing behind it. Shifting his eye away from his scope, he sees the dust cloud kicked up by the Nomad. All he can do is pray his sister gets to them in time.

“ _I got them, Cora’s fine but Vetra… She’s still up there Scott. Vetra’s still up there._ ”

** Vetra POV **

Cold, hard metal. I shake myself awake, groaning as the feeling of my bare plates pressing into unyielding metal comes back to me. The Kett have stripped me of my armor and weapons. I am as naked as the day I was born. Scanning the entirety of my cell, I spot a small hexagonal shaped window. Dragging my numb, half asleep body to the door, I peer out of the dirty glass to see row after row of identical cells stretching on for as long as the eye can see. As my eyes adjust to the darkness inside the cell, I barely make out a hulking figure slouched in the corner.

The shape moves and I realise that there is another creature in here with me. An eerie click-clack precedes the scrape of metal as said creature slides out of the darkness. Pitch black almond shaped eyes peer out from under the veil of darkness. The creature’s smooth milky-white shell comes into view. Of all the aliens I’ve seen in my lifetime, this creature takes the cake for being the most weird. It emits no smell and asides from the sound of it moving, I cannot detect any vibrations from it. It seems not to even breathe.

From what little I can see, it looks like a giant lobster crossed with a horseshoe crab. It has a huge diamond shaped head and no mouth. Instead of hands, it has two light pink tentacles. It clearly looks intelligent as its eyes scan over me intently. As if sizing me up for its next meal. Backing away from it, I raise my hands in a defensive posture as I shuffle backwards.

“I don’t want to hurt you. Who, what are you?” I ask as I back towards the door. Using the stream of light to get a better look at the creature.

It seems to possess thick natural armor and has three pairs of legs. Its body is bulky yet smooth and streamlined. _It must be an aquatic or at least amphibious species._

The creature lunges forward. I try to block it but it is far too heavy for me to have any effect without the help of my armor. The creature pins my arms to the door, causing my head to snap back painfully into the glass. Shaking off the pain, I collect my legs from under me and deliver a swift kick to the creature’s abdomen. It emits no sound but gets more aggressive, crushing my feet beneath two of its legs. I scream in pain as I feel one of my toes break. The creature uses this opportunity to shove a slimy tentacle down my throat. The girth of it forces my mouth wider so that I have no chance of biting down on it.

I do my best to struggle against its grip as I feel a weird foreign entity swim among my thoughts, as if my mind were an ocean. My surroundings start to sway as if I was drunk, everything seemingly slowing down.

 _Get out. GET OUT. GET OUT!_ I scream in my mind, fear filling me as I feel the foreign entity grow stronger, solidifying in my brain like a dark ball of shadow. Immediately my thoughts jump to Ryder, my fear of dying now a very real threat because of this creature.

Instantly, the creature’s behaviour changes. Its hold on me relaxes slightly, the painful pressure of its presence in my mind reducing significantly. I feel it swim in a different direction now, chasing the thought of Ryder. My thoughts jump to the conversation we had this morning, how we discussed the possibility of us having a child together, of us making love and me scenting her.

The creature completely releases its hold on me, withdrawing its tentacle from my mouth. It creeps backwards into the shadows. I try to steady myself by leaning back into the door but my head spins too much and my legs grow weak. I try to grasp at empty air, my arm passing through the image of Sara standing before me smiling, bedsheet wrapped around her. Breasts just barely covered, her nipples plainly showing through the red satin just before darkness grips me in its iron grip.

=====

** Ryder POV **

“Kallo get the Tempest ready for lift-off now. I want to take off the moment I get back. They have Vetra. Suvi track that ship. Wherever it goes, I want to know.” I spare a glance upwards from the windshield to see the tell-tail trail of the probe being shot from the Tempest.

I look back over my shoulder, checking on Jaal and Drax in the backseat. “Jaal you’re a weapons’ engineer, right? Can you retrofit weapons onto the Tempest?”

“I am a weapons’ engineer yes but I only work on handh…” The Angara protests.

“Can you or can you not?”

“I-I can.”

“Great. As soon as we get back to the Tempest, we’re going to the Nexus. I need to have a word with Taan. The fleet needs to be armed.”

“Shouldn’t we be chasing after the ship Ryder? They have Vetra!” Liam shouts in my ear.

“You don’t think I want to? You don’t think I wish I could just fire up the engines and chase that damn ship but no. _No_. Not until I can blow them out of the fucking sky. I will _not_ risk the life of my mate because the Tempest has fuck all for weapons.”

=====

“You want to put weapons on a pathfinder vessel? Unacceptable! Completely unacceptable! The initiative is not a military organisation! We are a civilian movement tha-”

“Cut the fucking crap Taan. I don’t give a fuck what you think. Vetra is onboard that ship. Who knows what fucked up experiments they’re doing to her. Think about it, if it was your wife onboard that ship what would you do? I’m not telling you because I need your permission. I’m telling you so that you don’t jeopardise the lives of every initiative man, woman and child in Andromeda.” I restrain myself from spitting in his face as I pivot on my heel and stalk out of his office.

“We’re heading to Voeld. I need to pick up some more weapons.” I tell Kallo as I nod to Jaal. The retrofits are going excellently. The Tempest now has as much armaments as a small frigate. Six seeker missiles, two light mass drivers and one main MAC. Enough to punch through the thick armor of any Kett ship.

=====

** Vetra POV **

Something wet and ticklish flitted over my foot, nudging me back to semi-consciousness. Shaking it off gently, I continued to let the dark comfort of unconsciousness pull me back. The feeling came again. Stronger this time. Kicking it off my foot, I finally open my eyes to look at the culprit. The pure black eyes of the creature bore into my soul as its midsection split further, exposing violet coloured fleshy tissue that looked a lot like gills. Small, fine cilia reached out and wrapped around my foot. The sharp pain of my broken toe faded into a dull ache. As soon as the task was completed, the creature retracted its cilia and its plates shifted back to form the solid, smooth surface of its protective shell.

“You healed me?” I ask, incredulous as I check my toe, feeling around for any broken bones or plates.

Instead of answering, it reaches out a tentacle to lightly touch my forehead. I flinch away initially, scared of feeling another presence in my mind. For so long I have always thought inwards. Never having another presence in my mind, another living being hearing my thoughts. The mere thought of that terrifies me. That is why I never took and Asari lover.

**_Do not be afraid, I mean you no harm. I apologise for the aggressive response. I needed to conduct a deep biological scan. I was…unsure if you were Kett._ **

“Wha-how are you… how are you speaking Turian?”

**_I learned. When I touched you. You look like Kett, yet you are not. You have a mate. Kett do not have mates. You plan on having children yet you are both female. Your mate is of a different species yet you love her. I do not understand. What are you?_ **

“I … My name is Vetra. I am a Turian from the milky way galaxy. My mate, Sara Ryder is a Human. What are you?”

**_My name is unpronounceable to you. The closest approximation in atmosphere would be…Kaarl. We are Yilk. We are native to the Andromeda galaxy but we come from a distant cluster._ **

“I’m confused. Why did you use two different pronouns to describe yourself?”

**_We are Yilk. I am Kaarl. We are parts of a whole. We are neither male nor female. We are both and neither._ **

“Then how do you reproduce?”

**_Two Yilk become three when the primary's fuse. They split into three secondaries’. Each with their own personality to add to the whole. I am curiosity and rational thought. My siblings are Kraan and Khaan. Kraan is love and emotional thought. Khaan is stubbornness and defiant thought. They are also on this ship. I must get to them. Will you help me?_ **

“I-I guess I don't really have a choice. I need to get back to my mate. She will probably be freaking out and overreacting and blaming herself and…”

**_Focus. We must escape._ **

“And how do you plan on doing that? These walls are at least six inches thick and the door only opens from the outside.”

**_I have been here for months. I have almost broken through to the door wiring._ **

“What? How?”

**_I consumed the iron in the wall._ **

“Huh. That's… neat.” I chuckle to myself, Ryder's mannerisms sure have rubbed off on me. _Right, focus! Get back to Sara and save Kaarl’s siblings._

=====

“Nearly got it. Aaaand there!” I thrum happily as the doors slide open. “Kaarl I was wondering, if Yilk exist based on emotions and type of thought then isn't there a limit to the number of Yilk?”

**_No. My bloodline is the K-aa bloodline. We are the guardians of thought. There are many other bloodlines, each adding their own traits to the collective. There are the R-as, the X-en, the V-hl and the L-ek. I wish to tell you more but time is a primary factor in the current situation._ **

Dropping down onto the catwalk, I see two guards patrolling farther down. I try to peer through the thick, foggy atmosphere but without my visor, I can’t see a thing.

**_This way. I sense my sister calling out to me. Unfortunately, you will have to guide me. Yilk do not see very well out of water._ **

“Your sister?” I whisper as we sneak in the opposite direction of the guards. Passing by an emergency weapons locker, I grab two pistols and a portable shield generator. I am too aware of my nakedness. The colder temperature of the Kett atmosphere causing my plates to grow cold. _At least the drop shield will offer some protection._

**_Yes. Kraan identifies as female while Khaan identifies as male._ **

“Then what about you?”

**_I am Yilk. I am part of the collective. I see no reason to identify as a gender when I am both and neither._ **

“Spirits you are complicated creatures! So, what do I refer to you as?”

**_You may call me they or it for that is what I am. Nothing more, nothing less. This way. My sister’s consciousness is growing stronger._ **

_Don’t bother trying to understand it Vetra. Just focus on getting back to Sara._ I sigh to myself as we move as silently as we can. Soon reaching a large metal door.

“Cover me while I get this open.” I say to Kaarl and throw him, it, whatever. A pistol. “Make sure you don’t miss.”

Focused on bypassing the Kett security, I initially ignore the sound of plasma gunfire. “Retrace you, add a handle here…block you, aaand… got you!” I throw my arm up to celebrate and immediately regret it as a plasma bolt catches my shoulder and burns clean through my plate. Screaming in agony, I throw the shield generator to the ground and dive behind its protective barrier.

“What part of fucking don’t miss don’t you understand?” I shout at Kaarl as the Kett guards move up and surround us. Two of them pin Kaarl to the floor while another advances towards me, his rifle raised and ready to fire. Inching my hand towards my dropped pistol, he notices it and kicks it away from me, stomping on my hand. Cradling my injured arm and hand, I try to scramble away from him, my plates scraping across the dirty metal grates that pass for Kett floor panels.

Laughing an evil, dark, monotone laugh, the Kett bastard slams the butt of his rifle into my face. Recovering from the impact, I stand up and try to fight back. Using my claws and superior height, I dodge the next few thrusts of his weapon. Spinning behind him and sinking my talons into his cheek and neck. Violently twisting his head, the satisfying crack of bones snapping tickles my ears. Whirling around, I leap at one of the other surprised guards. One drops his rifle out of pure shock but the other simply pulls the trigger of his rifle. I brace for the searing pain of plasma burning through my flesh but instead, my limbs go numb and I can’t move. The Kett brings his foot down on my stomach. Hard. Knocking any remaining fight out of me.

Grunting with pain, I try my best to turn away from the savage blows of my captors as they rain punches and kicks on my bare plates.

The guard raises his rifle again and pulls the trigger for the second time. Burning electricity rampages through my nerves, setting them on fire and making me convulse and pass out.

I wake up only to find out that we’ve been thrown back into a cell. Sitting up, my hand splashes in a puddle of fluid. I recognise the smell immediately. The smell of my own urine.

“Fuck.”

**_Are you alright?_ **

“I'm fine!” I snap back at it, growling slightly.

**_You are upset._ **

“Spirits what gave it away? The fact that I'm sitting in a cell covered in my own piss and nowhere closer to getting back to Sara?”

**_But we are closer._ **

“How? Tell me, because all I see are the same four walls and no way off this damn ship!” I shout, kicking and punching the cell door. Leaving behind nothing but a few dents and scratches.

 ** _We have a way out._** Kaarl opens its chest cavity, dumping a mess of metal and electronic components onto the ground. “What is all this stuff?”

**_Our way out._ **

I mentally slap myself. _Of course. What did you expect from the Yilk voice of reason._

The Yilk’s internal tentacles snake out and split into fine cilia. The glow tipped cilia take hold of the components and transform the pieces of junk into another thing which I've never seen before. The object takes shape from the inside out as if I were watching a fabricator work. _Molecular restructuring. Nice._

Letting out a long sigh of defeat as I watch Kaarl work, I lower myself to the ground slowly, taking great care to avoid the puddle. Leaning back and interlocking my fingers, I fix my gaze on the Yilk, taking in the full measure of its alien features. “So Kaarl, it seems like we have a lot of time on our hands. Tell me more about your people.”

The Yilk momentarily stops its work, twin black eyes dissecting my face. Its tentacles flick twice before continuing their flurry of movement. **_As I told you before, there are five bloodlines in the Yilk collective. Each with their own purpose. There are the K-aa, my bloodline. The R-as, the X-en, the V-hl and the L-ek._**

**_Kaa embody the collective’s emotions and thoughts. We are the oldest and are the second rarest of our race._ **

**_The Ras embody the physical senses. They allow the collective to feel our world in every shape, colour and form._ **

**_The Xen are our spiritual guardians. They protect the Temple of souls, containing our entire history and collected knowledge._ **

**_The Vhl are our builders. They construct everything the collective needs. From weapons to ships, the Vhl are the best builders in the galaxy._ **

**_Lastly the Lek. They are our protectors. They are the largest and most resilient of us. They make your Krogan look like misbehaved children. A single pair of Lek hunters can turn the tide of battle. There is a story of three hundred Lek decimating the Archon’s fleet when she first tried to invade Yilk territory._ **

“She? There is a female Archon?”

**_There are many Archons. They are the Kett supreme commanders for that sector of space. The Kett empire spans thousands of worlds. Yilk have been fighting them for a hundred thousand years. Neither side have taken or lost a single world. There are also eleven Primes. They are overseers that report directly to the Kett high council._ **

“Wow. A hundred thousand years? Is that how old you are?”

**_Yes and no. My genetic memories are a millennia old but my current carapace is a thousand years old._ **

“So, why were you so far away from your home? Why come to Heleus?”

**_We were looking for the Jaardan. They created a weapons system that could stop the Kett. My siblings and I were sent to investigate and potentially form an alliance with the Jaardan. But when we arrived in Heleus, our ship was heavily damaged by an unforeseen energy cloud. We had no choice but to enter stasis and await rescue. Our ancillia informed us that all traces of the Jaardan had been removed._ **

“The scourge. The story is always the same. Arrive in Heleus, slam straight into the scourge, ship gets heavily damaged. I know because I experienced the same thing. Nearly lost my sister to it too. The scourge tore through the cryo bay as if it were paper. I saw people, pods sucked into space and there was nothing could do to stop it.”

The Yilk nods in understanding, its massive head bobbing up and down. It sets the completed device down on the floor, retracting its cilia and resealing its shell.

**_The device is completed. It will allow us to leave and enter our cell at will. I must contact the Yilk armada. We cannot allow our genome to be deciphered by the Kett. The implications of them learning how our collective mind works is…troubling. I require parts to build a transmitter._ **

“What do you need?”

=====

The first few outings were simple. Get this circuit, get this hunk of metal, I need this component. But as the transmitter took shape, the required parts got harder and harder to come by. The latest part was also the most important. A quantum entangler module. The only thing that could transmit Kaarl’s message to the rest of the Yilk empire.

The problem? It could only be found in two places in the ship, the communications pod in the main ops centre or the spare parts warehouse down in engineering. Both of which were crawling with Kett and not going to be easy to navigate without being detected. _If only I had a camouflage module._

Instead, I had to resort to the archaic method of banging on the floor and quickly dispatching any Kett that came to investigate the noise.

Thus, crawling through the cramped air duct, I heft the Kett equivalent of a wrench and set to work, unscrewing the bolts that hold the service compartment in place. Working as quickly as I can while keeping alert for any sign of Kett activity, I finally get the compartment open. “Yes!” I congratulate myself with a hushed breath as at last the final piece of the puzzle is in my grasp.

“Bring them to the labs. Primus wants to learn more about this new species.” The unmistakably deep Kett voice sends me scampering for cover. I cleanly forget about my wrench and in my haste, kick it flying across the floor. _S’kak._

Eyes darting around for any means of escape, I spot only one. A small indent in the ceiling where the pipes go to another level of the ship. I spare a glance at the small glass cylinder in my palm. _Oh, what the hell._ I pop the cylinder into my mouth and hold it securely with my tongue while I hook my hands and feet into the pipes, pressing myself into the indent as much as possible just in the nick of time. The approaching guard passes just below me as I secure my feet on the dusty metal pipes.

Holding my breath as the guard’s head comes within an inch of my breast bone, I pray to pretty much every spirit possible that the guard will just keep walking and not notice me. I watch with bated breath as the guard reaches the end of the hallway, mechanically turns around and reports back to his superior.

“Search inconclusive. Continue with assigned tasks.” The leader commands the two other Kett and they obediently march their prisoners forward.

Two Turians come into view. One male, one female. Both naked, just like me. The male’s fringe is heavily damaged. The sensitive blood vessels either cracked or snapped off completely. I can still see the remains of blood on the stumps of what must have been a once impressive fringe. _Kett bastards._ I can’t even imagine the pain he’s going through. I don’t even know how he’s still standing. Let alone walking.

 _Oh no._ The female is heavily pregnant, her belly swollen with child. I can see that her skin is pallid and her form sunken in. The Kett behind her shoves her forward with the barrel of his rifle, causing her to stumble and fall to her knees. “Get up.” The guard cruelly kicks her in the side, the male rushes to catch her but the guard is clearly not having it. The male Turian gets a hard whack to the fringe by the guard, causing him to shriek in pain and crumble to the floor. The shared painful harmonics of the two can only mean one thing. They’re a mated pair.

The two Kett gather the female up like a ragdoll and manually drag her onwards. The male is not so lucky, receiving a kick in the back and forced to walk with a gun pressing into his back.

Slowly disentangling myself from the pipes, I creep behind them as quiet as I can. Doing my best to melt into whatever cover I can. Up ahead, the grime covered walls of the engineering department give way to much cleaner floors and walls. The sick green colour scheme still hasn’t given up though. The Kett clearly don’t have any sense of interior decoration.

Pressing myself to the glass, I duck out of sight as a Kett scientist glides past the window. Obscuring my view for a moment. The male Turian struggles with his captors and nearly breaks free but they hit his fringe yet again and shove him backwards into a cell. They drag his mate into a clear glass room. I can still hear his anguished wails through the thick glass.

I watch on in abject horror as the Kett shackle the female to the operating bed. Sharp, spindly robotic arms descend from the ceiling. Two Kett scientists buzz over the controls, speaking rapidly to one another. The mother screams and begs them to stop. Struggling with all her might as a plasma saw lowers itself to her belly.

_No. Spirits no. Please god, no._

Her screams intensify a thousand-fold as the plasma burns through her flesh, blue blood splashing everywhere. She must have passed out from the pain because her cries go quiet. She regains consciousness long enough to see two wicked looking blades stab into her stomach and pull her womb apart. A third arm reaches into her body and pulls out the foetus, still inside it’s protective sac. A Kett scientist puts it into a specimen jar as if that’s all it is. A specimen. Not a living being that died even before it was alive.

I feel bile rise in my throat as the mother’s struggles cease and her head falls limply to the side, her glassy, still eyes boring into my own.

I vomit whatever little food I had in my stomach.

_Dying while watching your baby ripped from your body. Fucking monsters. MONSTERS!_

I turn tail and run. Running as fast as I can away from that horrible place. Away from the Kett monsters.

=====

** No POV  
Tempest bridge-Last known location of the Kett mothership **

“It’s not here.” Suvi notes, looking up from her instruments at a clearly distraught Ryder.

“What do you mean it’s not here? This is where the probe signal ends right? Find it! Find her! Fucking scan it or something. DO SOMETHING!” Ryder screams to the random bits of junk the Kett mothership dumped just before jumping to FTL.

Tears streaming down her face as she pounds a fist on the control panel, she turns into her brother’s embrace. Sinking into his strong arms and letting him hold the pieces of her heart together. “We’ll find her. We’ll find her, I promise.” He says into her ear, gently soothing his hand over her shaking shoulders.

“I’ve got somethi-” Suvi is cut off when her control panel suddenly goes into lockdown, a flashing red lockdown message replacing every holo enabled surface.

“ _Tango alpha alpha eleven-zero two protocol enabled. Returning Tempest to Nexus. Logging you out._ ” SAM says before going dead.

“ _What’s going on? SAM just went offline._ ” Gil shouts over the comm.

“No. No no no. NO! TAAN!” Sara unleashes her fury, a wave of pure biotic energy rolling off her and scorching the floor.

Plunging out of FTL right over the nexus, the Tempest crew is helpless as the ship automatically parks itself at the usual landing pad, right where a whole bunch of well-armed soldiers are waiting for them.

“Ah Ryder, so nice of you to join us. I was going to call you first and ask you to return but as you clearly demonstrated before, you clearly do not have any respect for me or protocol. How was it you put it? Fuck you? You think you are above the law? You think that just because you are a Pathfinder everybody must make way for you? You’re wrong. I’m putting a stop to this.” Taan taps his omni-tool and begins reading.

“Sara Evangeline Ryder you are under arrest for illegal possession of weapons, conspiring against nexus leadership and disobeying direct orders. You do not have a right to a lawyer and will be detained until the proper course of action can be discerned. You are also stripped of the title Pathfinder. The Tempest and her crew are no longer under your command.” Taan’s smug face betrays how much he’s enjoying himself as two burly guards grab Ryder and haul her off to the holding cells. Ryder doesn’t restrain herself this time and spits in the Salarian’s face as she passes him.

“Ryder what’s the plan? What’s the angle boss?” Same words, different mouths. The crew all keep asking her the same question. “I don’t know. I don’t know! Just be patient and wait. I’ll clear our names. I promise.”

_I promise._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, do you hate the Kett even more now? Well if you do, then you'll probably need to see a therapist after the next chapter. It gets worse.
> 
> I'm sorry...
> 
> And yes, Vetra is cursing a lot more than normal and cursing less like a Turian but she's in a very stressful situation and having a foul mouthed Girlfriend does rub off a little on her.


	10. Separation Pt III

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hay ya'll, I am SO sorry for the one month lack in updates. I was just bogged down by projects and so much work. Plus this chapter was originally only gonna be like maybe 3000 words long but my brain got carried away and decided to keep adding on to this chapter. So as a thank you gift for sticking with me through my writing journey and the journey of these two star crossed lovers, I have a 8303 word long, titan of a chapter for you.  
> So as they say,  
> "STAND BY FOR TITANFALL!"

** Separation III **

** No POV **

** 3 weeks later **

Ryder was losing her goddam mind. Three weeks of being stuck in a cell with no interaction from the outside. She had considered just bashing her way out of the cell by force, storming Taan’s office and forcing him to give her the Tempest to search for Vetra. The only problem with that plan, she was held in a secure section of the Nexus. There were at least a hundred armed guards between her and the tram that would take her to the Ops centre. Without her armor, there was simply no way her biotics could last long enough to get her there. On top of all that, she was dressed in a biotic nullification suit that could only be unlocked by a member of the Nexus council.

Basically, she was stuck here, sitting on her ass and twiddling her thumbs as Taan “decided” what to do with her. He was content with letting her rot in a cell for the rest of her days. The rest of the crew had been released and reassigned weeks ago. Suvi, Lexi and Elsie had all been reassigned to help with essential medical stuff not a day after they were incarcerated. Jaal had been forced to return to the resistance a few days later. Drack, Cora and Liam had been reassigned to guard outposts. Peebee had simply disappeared once her restraints were removed. From what little conversation Ryder happened to overhear, she had stolen a shuttle and vanished. A couple days after that, Scott had been pulled out of his cell. Apparently, there was a station wide system malfunction that they needed him to fix.

That left poor Sara Ryder all alone in the detention block, trapped within four white composite walls with nothing but a couple omni-games to play with. Rising from the white cot, Sara moved to the bathroom stall staring at herself in the mirror.

Dark circles ring her eyes, weary bloodshot eyes stare back at her. She hadn’t had a good night’s sleep in days. Far too worried about what Vetra was going through and stewing in her anger at her inability to do anything about it. The combined stress of not knowing what happened to Vetra coupled with her resentment and lack of sleep meant that at some point, something had to give. This was that point.

Yelling in anger, Ryder lashes out at the mirror. Punching the mirror again and again. Of course, the mirror showed no signs of damage at all. Glass had been replaced with transparent nano-steel centuries ago. Only slight scuff marks marred the otherwise pristine surface. Putting more force into her blows, Ryder continues her barrage of blows. Fists flailing, her shouts and grunts bounce around the room as her fists glance off the mirror. Soon the scuffs turn red. The skin on her knuckles split wide open. Letting blood smear the smooth mirrored surface. Stumbling back from the mirror, Ryder only faintly feels the stinging pain from her knuckles. Panting and catching her breath, she lets herself fall to the ground, hugging her knees to herself as she lets herself cry for the first time in weeks.

 

** Kett Command ship- Detention block **

_Pain._ Pain was all Vetra felt. Pain from the multiple broken plates across her body. Pain from her talons being ripped out. Deep, sharp pains every time she breathed from the broken ribs she had.

For the past two days, she had been hanging in this torture chamber being tortured for two hours at a time. Each short break marked with exhausting agony as her bones knit themselves back together.

“What message did you send?” The Kett torture master asked again. Venom dripping from his words. In his hand, he held the Kett equivalent of a cattle prod. His selected tool for this two hour session of torture. Two hours of excruciating pain as he asked her the same question again and again. Each time, shocking her into near unconsciousness in return for her defiance. She braced herself for the pain she knew was coming. It didn’t help. Screaming and kicking her legs struggling against her restraints. Only managing to jostle her injured ribs, adding to the torment. Blackness tore at her vision, tugging her invitingly into unconsciousness. She refused its grasp, forcing herself to stare the Kett straight in his ugly face. She had learnt weeks ago that falling unconscious was the last thing you wanted. The Kett could do absolutely anything to you then. You had no chance of fighting back. At least awake, you knew what they were doing to you.

“What Message Did You Send?” The Kett asked again, sparking the cattle prod menacingly. Vetra forced herself to smile, her half mandible tugging painfully on her swollen cheek. “Lovely weather we’re having today, isn’t it?”

Enraged, the Kett Torture master punches Vetra in the nose, further cracking her nose plate and causing blue blood to leak freely from her face. “Your stubbornness will be your undoing.” The Kett says, putting away the cattle prod with the rest of his torture toys.

“I will let you rest for today and think on the consequences of your actions. Tomorrow however, you and I will play a little game.” He laughs darkly and cups a hand between her bare legs. Sending a disgusted shudder through her. “Tend to her wounds. I want her alive for tomorrow.” The Torture master, flairs his cloak as he storms out the door. Coughing up blood, Vetra wheezes breath into her lungs as the two Kett assistants patch her up. _Another day, another session. C’mon Ryder._

Not long after, she is shoved into her cell where she is carefully caught and laid on a cot. Vetra lets herself relax into the only welcoming touch she’s felt in days. Her cellmate, Aeila. The daughter of an Outcast prisoner. She had been in this cell for nearly three months. Her mother was still frozen somewhere on the Turian ark but her father was dead. Shot in the back by the Kett the moment he showed them the location of a hidden Outcast research facility.

 “She must be really amazing for you to be able to endure so much.” Aeila says, remarking on Vetra’s resilience. Vetra simply hums her assent while the younger Turian girl gingerly wipes blood away from Vetra’s broken nose. Making sure her cellmate wouldn’t accidentally choke on her own blood. “This will hurt.” Aeila’s warning doesn’t help one bit. Vetra yelps as the plates of her nose snap back into place. The bony cartilage already beginning to regenerate thanks to the rejuvenation drugs the Kett had pumped into her system.

The Kett were brutally efficient. They would inflict torture yes, but they would also make sure that their victim could heal sufficiently before the next session. Wounds that would take months to heal took only days. The side effects of the healing serum were another form of torture. The serum would burn internally as it healed the victim, making sure that the victim was in a state of perpetual torment.

“She is. I only hope she got that message.” Vetra winced as she felt a rib pop back into place accompanied by the searing burn deep within her chest as the bone fused back into its proper state.

“Here. Eat something.” Aeila sits Vetra up, leaning her against the side of the cell. Offering her a bowl of mushy nutrient paste. Vetra could even see a few chunks of actual meat in the paste. Ignoring the pain in her side, Vetra greedily grabs the bowl and scoffs down the paste. Shovelling handfuls of paste into her mouth. Quenching the hunger pains that had been eating away her insides for the past two days only stopping to relish the taste of the meat and letting it slowly dissolve on her tongue. The Kett must have realised that their carnivorous Turian prisoners were dying from malnutrition because of the lack of meat in their diet.

Wiping her mouth on the back of her hand, Vetra looks up with thankful eyes. She knew Aeila must have given her most of the meat. “It’s alright. I had enough. You needed it more anyways. Rest now. Save your strength. They will be back tomorrow.” Aeila helps the wounded Turian lie down on her cot to rest, doing her best to make her comfortable.

“Any news on Kaarl?” Vetra asks. The Yilk had also been captured when they activated the beacon. Their only shot at contacting the outside world. Last Vetra had seen, it was being dragged away by two Kett soldiers. Its carapace cracked and falling off in places. It's bio-luminescent blood leaking a trail onto the floor. Aeila shook her head sadly, muttering a soft apology to Vetra as the older Turian finally let herself succumb to her exhaustion.

As promised, the moment the night cycle ended, the cell door opened and two guards dragged Vetra away. Letting her head droop, Vetra offered no resistance as she was lead towards the lab. She already knew that the Kett were trying to understand her species’ genetics. That’s why they were extracting Turian foetuses and dissecting them.

“Of all the countless species, we have encountered and subjugated, your species is one of the most unique. Not only is your DNA not Levo-amino based, your DNA is also highly resistant to change. It breaks down at the slightest alteration. Most fascinating. As with any science, research is required. We have been trying to produce Turian offspring in the most natural way so that we might unlock the secrets of your DNA and assimilate it. Most of our attempts have been unsuccessful. However, those that were all had this mark on their necks.” The Chief interrogator taps his stylus on Vetra’s collarbone. Just above the mark of Sara’s teeth. Through much effort and repeated application, they had finally managed to make a noticeable mark on Vetra’s tough hide.

“We do not understand what it signifies and none of our test subjects have been willing to give us that information. As a result, they promptly expired after extraction.” The Chief gestures to the side where a pile of dead female Turians lie. Their bellies cut open and leaking freely. Vetra forces herself to look away, revulsion roiling in her stomach.

Arriving in the cleanest room Vetra has seen throughout the ship, the guards hoist her onto a metal table. Thick clamps secure themselves over her hands and feet. Locking her into place. “You are going to be our first test subject for completely recombinant DNA. You will be injected repeatedly with different combinations until you are pregnant. Then, you will give birth to the first Kett, born of Turian blood. Then, and only then; do you have my permission to die.”

=====

** The Nexus **

“Sara Ryder. Convicted for treason, assault of a Nexus official, disobeying direct orders and dissertation.” The female guard reads off a datapad, unlocking the cell door and pushing Sara’s face against the wall. Securing her hands behind her back with electronic restraints.

“You sure you don’t want to consult a dictionary? There were at least four big words in that sentence.” Sara lets the jab roll off her tongue. She can’t be bothered to hold it in anymore. The Nexus is responsible for killing her wife. All she can do is find a way to escape. Steal a ship or something, track down the Primus and recover Vetra’s body. That is if there’s even a body left to recover. Sara feels her heart sink into another cycle of unending sorrow. Her sorrow turns to hate in an instant. If it weren’t for Taan and his meddling cronies, Vetra would be in her arms right now, safe and sound.

“Fuck you.” The guard shoves her forward, out of the cell. Two male guards take up the rear, their rifles pointing at her back. “So now Taan wants to see me huh? After he let me rot for three weeks in a cell while my wife could be fighting and dying out there for all I know.”

“Your wife? I thought you weren’t married yet.” One of the guards behind her asks.

“Well we’re not married per se, we’re mated. Which is kinda the same thing.” Ryder replies.

“My god, what is that even like? I mean do they even have cunts? I’ve never seen a Turian naked. Let alone a female one.” The other male guard pipes up. “I thought they were all straight. Y’know, survival of the fittest and all…”

“Man, you been livin’ under a rock? The pathfinder and that Turian have been in a relationship for more than a year now.” The female guard says, glancing down at her datapad to unlock the door.

“Well I just recently got defrosted. Came to Andromeda to see the sights and get posted to guard duty.” Male guard 2 says. “Bummer.” Guard 1 pats his buddy on the back. The female guard is busy typing in the authorisation code. Sensing that the guards are distracted, Sara pretends to trip. Landing hard on one knee, Sara grits her teeth and ignores the pain. Guard 1 notices her stumble and moves forward to pick her up. Aiming a sharp kick to the side of his knee, he goes down in a heap, screaming from his dislocated kneecap. Guard 2 swings his weapon at her and prepares to stun her. Sara is prepared for this and ducks. The shot misses her head by barely an inch and proceeds to shock the female guard into unconsciousness.

With two guards down, the last male guard draws his shock baton and blindly charges her. Sara slides under his legs and lets her wrist bindings touch the baton. The electrical charge fries the electronic locks and the bindings fall off her wrists with a clank.

Now free to use her arms, Sara gets into her fighting stance. Ready to meet her foe. The guard reaches towards his comm device with his free hand. Seeing this, Sara kicks his baton wielding arm, sending the device into his throat. Dropping him instantly. Sara rolls him over to check that he didn’t accidentally trigger the alarm. Satisfied that her breakout attempt had gone unnoticed so far.

Taking a breath to calm herself, Sara picks up a rifle and the datapad. Pushing forward through the door, she runs and guns. Stunning anyone who got in her way. “To Nexus Control” Sara flicks her eyes to the sign as she sprints down empty corridors. Finally reaching the tram, she slaps a hand on the manual button and selects the landing bay. If she can somehow get a ship, she could start her search. She made a mental list of everything she needed and where she could get hold of them. Fabricator kit, included in any shuttle’s emergency compartment. Plasma torch to cut the infuriating suit off her body. Easily found in the hangar. Access to SAM. Well shit. The AI would have to obey Taan because of his programming. There was no way she could convince him to help her without breaking his programming.

 _“That is where you are mistaken. I will help you find Vetra. It is my prime directive to ensure the wellbeing of the pathfinder. As my programming dictates that I must protect my pathfinder at all costs and obey the wishes of the Director, I am unable to proceed due to conflicting directives. I…feel that helping you find Vetra is the right thing to do. You must hurry Sara. Vetra is running out of time. Terminating communication. They have detected you.”_ SAM’s avatar pops off the tram screen. At the same time, the doors open. Grabbing the tiny penny sized OSD, Sara pushes it into her bra and readies her weapons.

Strong biotics wrench her off the floor, pulling the rifle effortlessly from her grasp. Hanging in mid-air, Sara scowls at Sarissa. The Asari has her hand raised in a tight grip. However, her face is pensive. As if she doesn’t agree with her orders.

“Ryder, nice to see you again. Right on time for your trial. Please, have a seat. I insist.” Taan motions to the centre of the podium where a large crowd have gathered to see the trial of the infamous Pathfinder. Forced to her knees, Sara grimaces as the biotic fields play havoc with her own biology. The ‘noise’ created by her internal field pushing against Sarissa’s giving her a migraine.

“Three weeks ago, Pathfinder Ryder was arrested for disobeying orders, treason and assault of a nexus official. Her team has been disbanded and her ship taken from her. Today we will decide on our next course of action. She will either be exiled, never to return to the Nexus or imprisoned for life where she will become an example to all.” Taan smiles to the crowd as some of them start to cheer. However, a large majority of them jeer and boo at Taan. _Bastard! Using my words to Spencer against me._

“Your votes are in! The results are… what?” Taan looks at his datapad in confusion. Evidently, he had expected the majority to agree with him. The results showed otherwise. Craning her neck up, Sara laughs at the source of his confusion. Someone had hacked the holoscreen and replace her with him. The results were split 51-49 between exiling him or arresting him. “The people have spoken Taan.” Sara grins up at the dumbfounded Salarian.

A sharp mic screech forces attention to the screen as the face of Director Addison appears. Flanked by the other members of the Nexus council, she looks like a menacing angel. Her mouth is twisted into a frown of disdain. Literally the most facial expression Ryder has ever seen cross her features. “Director Taan, you’re under arrest.”

Spinning around in confusion, Taan looks like a fish out of water as his mouth flaps open and closed. Drawing more laughter from the crowd. “Addison what’s going on?”

“You are under arrest for crimes against the Nexus, planned genocide and murder.” Addison continues. “The evidence stacks up. You were trying to incite a Krogan rebellion to kick them off the station. You were the one that instructed Spencer to sabotage and disrupt systems on the Nexus. You refused to aid the Krogan colonies, further angering them. Most of all, you killed Jien Garson. The leader and would be director of the Initiative.”

“No. No! Impossible. I had the evidence removed. How is this possible?” Taan shakes his head, completely baffled at how his plan had backfired so spectacularly. “Sarissa, arrest that man.” The Asari releases her hold on Ryder and lifts her hand at Taan.

Her biotics never get the chance to grip the flesh of the conniving Director. A shot rings out and Sarissa drops to the ground, a deep purple puddle spreading from her chest. Gasping in pain, the Asari struggles to lift her body up, leaning on one elbow.

“I’m the Director! You will do as I say!” Taan shouts. Anger and frustration hanging around him like a thundercloud. “This is my Nexus! My ship! I am the Direc-” A hole appears in his forehead. Bits of brain matter and gore splatter the ground next to Sara’s face as his lifeless body slumps to the floor like a sack of trash someone had dumped outside on bin day.

“You’re a bloody awful one, that’s what you are.” Addison remarks, lowering her gun and flipping the safety on. “Get Sarissa to medical.” Addison orders a couple of guards, turning to Sara and helping her to her feet.

“I know what you want to say. Save it. You have more important matters to attend to. Take this.” Addison hands her an OSD. “Your team is assembled on the Tempest and waiting for your command.” Addison waves a hand over Sara’s collar, unlocking the binds on her suit. Sara feels her power come rushing back to her. The comforting ever-present hum of her biotics once again buzzing in the back of her mind.

“Go, go get your mate back.”

Sara plans to do just that.

=====

** Kett command ship- Medical **

“Please no more.” Vetra weakly begs the scientists behind the glass observation window. She can feel the black Kett goo mixed with her own fluids disgustingly slide out and down between her legs, dripping onto the floor. “You have not yet been impregnated. The trial will continue until you are.” The Chief says. His voice impassive as he studies the live diagram of Vetra’s uterus where the probe once again enters her womb to deposit yet another vial of Kett DNA.

“Commencing test 644. Depositing sample.” Vetra arched her back, trying to get as far away as possible from the disgusting thing depositing itself inside of her. “Hold for enzyme distribution. Failure. Sample will not bond. Commence with next test. Commencing test 645 of 700.”

Growling behind the glass, the Chief made his frustration known. _Again._

“Again.” The chief glared at Vetra as if she was somehow refusing to do what he wanted. Vetra strained against her restraints again. Painful torture she could take. She had long come to terms with the fact that sooner or later she would be raped. It was all a technicality in her line of work. What she couldn't take was being treated like a thing. Like a tool just to be used. That's all she was to these Kett. A breeding tank that happened to be alive. It went against every instinct she had. Her rational mind was quickly losing the battle to the blind rage that burned beneath her subconscious. Her feral nature was threatening to burst forth. She couldn't allow that to happen for she knew that her feral self would beg for her mate. Revealing the secret, the Kett so desperately wanted. Once mated, only the seed of their mate would produce offspring.

 _“Commander, report.”_ Primus said to Chief.

“Experiment unsuccessful. Prisoner may be infertile.” Chief answered his superior. His voice very nearly wavering in fear. “Conduct thorough scan. I want to know why you have failed me before I space you.”

“Yes Primus.” Chief bowed his head. Angrily waving an arm at the medical techs to carry out the Primus’ instructions.

“Patient’s mark is different from all previously encountered specimens. It appears to come from a non-Turian species. Notifying the Primus.” The tech said. His fingers dancing over the keyboard.

“Interesting. Inquisitor, I have learnt the significance of the mark. It is a mating mark. Only mated pairs can produce offspring. We must find the mate of this prisoner.” Primus said to Chief. _Or rather, Inquisitor. Damn Kett and their fancy titles._

“Teeth marks identified as Human. Recoding DNA reconstruction matrix.” The tech announced. “Code only Human and Turian DNA for the first test. Use the pathfinder sample. It should give us the most favourable results as we cannot be sure of the results of the experiment. Make sure the specimen survives. This one is unique. Continue testing with phase 2.” Primus ended the transmission.

=====

Pressing the OSD into the main console’s data-slot, Ryder types in the passcode and hits play. Immediately, Vetra's voice fills the room.

“If you're hearing this, it means that this piece of shit transmitter actually works. I'm alive Sara. But please hurry. I'm… not sure how much longer I can keep this up. I need you. Attached are the last known coordinates of this ship. There are other prisoners on board. Please hurry. I love y-” Vetra's voice is cut off by the sound of plasma discharge, the sound of sparks flying and a short, pained grunt from Vetra has Cold fear gripping onto Sara's heart.

“Do we have her location?” The Pathfinder’s gaze is unyielding steel. Staring at the galaxy map, unreadable as her grip tightens on the console.

“Course set. Ready to jump on your mark.” Kallo confirms.

“Take me to her.” Ryder says. A blue bubble of plasma encapsulates the Tempest, warping and stretching space around them. Allowing the ship to transition into slipspace and bypass the speed of light by many magnitudes more than standard Initiative FTL. Transitioning back to normal space, they are met with a horrifying sight. Hundreds of frozen Turian bodies floating aimlessly in the void together with bits of trash. The evidence of a waste dump by a large Kett ship before accelerating to FTL.

A female Turian body smacks into the glass, startling Sara. Her frozen mandible crumbles off her face like a grim taunt. Averting her eyes, Sara turns to Suvi. “Scan each and every one of them. I want to know if… polarise forward view screen.” She says, voice a hoarse whisper.

“Scanning all Initiative med-chips. Scanning, no traces of Vetra’s med-chip found. She’s… not here.” Suvi said. Her voice hesitant as she turned towards Ryder, her hand coming to rest comfortingly on the Pathfinder’s shoulder.

Forcing herself to turn back to the darkened view screen, Ryder stares at the corpse resting gently against the glass, examining each feature of the woman. Memorising the face and convincing herself that the woman is not Vetra and that her mate is still alive and waiting for her aboard the Primus’ ship.

_“Detecting Kett exhaust trail. Extrapolating course. Pathfinder, I have located a possible destination vector. We should overtake the Kett at standard warp in about two hours._

“Get us there in one.” Ryder turned sharply and marched to the weapons locker, slipping into her combat under suit and snapping on her armour. Forgoing her standard kit of remnant armour, she instead opts for the suit of N7 armour her dad used to wear. Deciding that she'd rather sacrifice the added protection for the unimaginable boost in biotic power. Running her hand over the smooth midnight black plates, she utters a soft prayer to her dad. Hoping that somehow, he’d be watching over her, helping her get Vetra home safely.

Turning to the small mirror in her locker, Sara tucks her hair behind her ears, grabbing as many nutrient pills as she could stuff into her pockets. Though incredibly bad for her kidneys and liver, they would provide the energy she required for a heavy assault. Picking up her new Heleus defender helmet, she stares at her reflection in the hideous purple glass. She really needed to have a word with the designer. Sighing as she clips the helmet to her belt, she internally deliberated if the 25% boost in damage was actually worth looking like a complete retard. _Stop it. This is for Vetra. Take every advantage you can get._ Her father’s words echoed in her head. Swinging her locker closed, she made for the bridge.

=====

“Decelerating to sub-light. Collision alert! Going dark.” Kallo’s eyes went wide as the blue Eezo slipspace bubble burst and spit them back into normal space. Narrowly dodging a Kett carrier, Kallo levels off. “That has got to be the largest Kett fleet I've ever seen. And what is that mushroom space station?”

“I've located the Primus’ ship. Scanning it now. I've found Vetra's Med-chip. Her vitals are less than ideal but not life threatening. She's still alive and fighting Ryder. But there's no way we can land without alerting the whole fleet.” Suvi says. Glancing up to see the pathfinder already heading to the ramp.

“Drack and Cora with me. We’re going for maximum shock and awe. I want these Kett pulverised.” Sara seals her helmet over her head. Nodding to Drack and Cora, she hits the hatch release.

Cora does her normal deep breathing exercises before she dons her helmet. Drack just cracks his neck and lets out an annoyed grunt, slamming the helmet on his head before he can regret it.

 _“I hate helmets. It makes everything feel muffled and far away. I want to be able to feel the life of my enemies fade before me.”_ He grumbles under his breath.

 _“I can hear you loud and clear you know. Would you rather have your lungs freeze and explode inside your body?”_ Cora says. Her voice calm as still water having slipped into her zen combat mode.

Taking a running jump out the Tempest, the trio hurtle through space, headed towards a tiny auxiliary port on the massive ship. Using small jets on their hardsuits to guide them in between cruisers and shuttles. Sara silently thanked god that most Kett ships didn't have windows and that the only windows they had were on the weapon decks and easy to avoid.

Swinging their legs forward and braking, the pathfinder team land silently on the green metal hull. Laying a sensor encrusted glove on the door console, Sara nods to the rest to ready their weapons as SAM bypasses the lock.

Climbing into the hatch and closing the airlock behind them, they wait as the chamber re-pressurises. Checking the map one more time, Sara marks the origin point of Vetra's transmission. A small maintenance console outside the cell blocks. The location of the transmission gave Sara hope. Her smuggler was still fighting and being able to leave her cell to send the message told her all she needed to know about her mate’s survival.

 _“200 metres straight ahead, turn left. 40 metres, turn right. Descend one floor, make a U-turn. 10 metres straight. Extract Vetra and run for it.”_ Sara recites Suvi’s instructions, once the door indicator turns green, she’s out the door and sprinting down the corridor.

Hearing Kett talking ahead of her, Sara slides behind a conveniently placed crate. Come to think of it, there are _a lot_ of crates here and a lot of Kett voices. Peeking over the crate, Sara sees row after row of Kett soldiers boarding dropships. _Crap. That is not good. They look like they’re preparing for an invasion._

Checking behind her, she sees Cora and Drack hiding behind crates as well. _“I’ve got your back kid.”_ Drack nods. Taking a grenade from his pouch and preparing to lob it into the mass of unsuspecting Kett.

**_Come to me._ **

Hot throbbing pain pounds inside Ryder’s skull. The unknown voice resonating inside her mind. Ripping her helmet off, she slumps with her back against the crate as the pounding intensifies.

**_Come to me. You will not survive._ **

Feeling her muscles twitch on their own, Ryder feels an overwhelming urge to follow the voice. _I…need to find…Vetra._ Sara forces herself to remember. The alien presence pulls her mind in the opposite direction. Clutching her pounding head, writhing on the floor as her brain seems to pull itself apart.

 ** _Come to me. I mean you no harm. I know where your mate is._** The voice says and Sara lets it lead her.

 _“Ryder! Ryder, you alright?”_ Drack lifts the human’s small chin with his finger. Her eyes are bloodshot and her nose is bleeding.

“I’m fine. Take me, take me that way.” She says, pointing down another hallway.

 _“You sure? That’s not the way to Vetra.”_ Cora narrows her eyes.

“Take me that way.” Ryder insists. Letting Drack throw her over one massive shoulder while the Krogan trudges forward. Following his mandate of ‘If Ryder says so, just do it. Make life simpler’

“It told me. It knows where Vetra is.” Ryder replies. Her gaze distant and eyelids fluttering shut.

Once the team reach a set of large double doors, Sara suddenly gasps loudly. Sucking in breath as Drack sets her against the wall. **_You are more receptive to communication than your mate. We do not have time to talk. Release me. I will lead you to your mate of you bring me to my siblings._**

Standing on auto-pilot, Ryder opens the doors. A large alien floats in the tank before her. It’s shiny black, Almond shaped eyes trained solely on her.

 _“By the Goddess, what hell is that?”_ Cora grips Ryder’s shoulder, trying to shake the other woman out of her trance but the Pathfinder is unresponsive. Her glassy gaze passing sweepingly over the console before she taps a few commands into it.

The orange liquid inside the tank drains away quickly, allowing the alien inside it to emerge. To answer the Huntress’ question, the alien simply touches the temple of her helmet and uploads a portion of its collective consciousness to her armor systems. Incorporating the new data, SAM broadcasts the information back to the Tempest for further analysis. Giving a condensed version to the Pathfinder team in the form of a tooltip.

 ** _This way. Your mate awaits._** The alien ambles out the room. It’s many legs making a clattering rhythm on the metal floor.

“You heard it. Let’s go.” Sara activates her sweeper rifle. Following the new alien.

=====

Feeling her mind going blank to blind fury, Vetra tries to claw her last vestiges of sanity back together but like a carpet coming unravelled, her efforts are ultimately useless as her feral side takes over.

“My mate. Give me my mate!” She screams. Her eyes darting around the room. Muscles straining against her restraints once again, her captors look on in curiosity as the metal shackles groan and strain against the strength of a feral Turian. Without their brain regulating the strength of their muscles, Turians could potentially be stronger than Krogan due to the higher gravity of their home world. Unfortunately, the added stress would also snap their own bones.

Breaking free from her wrist restraints, Vetra doesn’t notice that her arm is broken. Her hand hangs limply at her side. With a roar, she claws at the shackles on her ankles. With the added pain of the drugs in her system, Vetra roars again as she pounces on the glass window. Her broken wrist having mended itself within seconds. Punching the glass repeatedly, the scientists scatter in fear.

“Test subject has escaped restraints. Send contingency team.” One of the researchers shouts into his comm, watching in alarm as cracks begin to appear on the glass. A furious and uncontrollable Turian on the other side. Teeth bared, growling and saliva dripping, she looks like something out from a nightmare.

The lock on the door turns green and the researcher thanks his lucky stars that the guards got here so quick. The doors open and plasma bolts fill the air.

Standing over the room of dead Kett, Ryder’s eyes widen as a blur of white crashes through the glass. Green blood splatters her visor as the Turian tears into the dead Kett, ripping the corpse apart. Seeing the missing mandible on the Turian, Sara immediately recognizes her wife.

Closing the distance in three strides, Sara ignores the warning shout from Cora as she jumps into her wife’s arms. The feral Turian lashes out at her, claws slicing through her underarmor like paper. Her blood leaks through the cuts and stains the floor but she doesn’t care. Her mate is here and alive. She knows that the only way to bring her mate out of her feral state was to let her know she was here.

Smelling the familiar smell of blood, Vetra closes her eyes. Her brain slowly regaining control as the familiar scent fills her nostrils. The scent of Ryder. The scent of home. Opening her eyes, two brown eyes gaze up at her. Shiny with tears.

“I’m here.” She says and Vetra believes her. For the first time in what feels like eternity, Vetra trusts her own eyes. Knowing that this cannot be a mirage. Sara is here. Holding her. Rescuing her like her knight in shining armor. She knows because she can smell it. Feel it. She can feel Sara’s blood.

 _Sara is bleeding._ Vetra’s brain jumps into overdrive again. Her mate is bleeding and she is the cause of it. “Hey, it’s alright. A bit of medi-gel and I’ll be right as rain. It’s worth it. You came back to me.” Sara grins. Ignoring the pain from her stomach. Cora quickly sets to work, cleaning and sealing the wound.

“It’s not good Ryder, your stomach was punctured. Acid is leaking into your body. We need to get you out of here ASAP. That was incredibly stupid and reckless.” The huntress growls at the Pathfinder. Annoyed at the unnecessary risks the girl took.

Standing up and glancing around the room, Vetra rifles through cabinets. Finally finding the little clear vial she’s looking for. “Inject her with this. It will heal her but it hurts like you wouldn’t believe.” Nodding grimly, Cora follows her instructions. Sara clenches her teeth and groans as liquid fire enters her veins. Her flesh knits itself together before their eyes. Two large swaths of bright pink skin replace her gaping wound.

Vetra turns away from the sight. She cannot bear the guilt that she is the cause for the injury to her mate. “Hey. Hey, it’s alright. It’s my fault really. Never jump a feral Turian. Lesson learnt.” Sara tries to joke. Her hand resting gingerly over her now sealed wound. Vetra knows the pain must still be raging inside her. “I think I deserve a shower after all this.” She says, looking down where the goo is drying against her thighs. Vetra tries to continue the joking tone but her guilt at hurting Sara holds her back.

“Come here. I love you.” Sara pulls her into a hug, kissing her all over her face, her scarred mandible and her mouth. Sara lets out a cute little moan when Vetra slips her tongue into her mouth, wanting to taste her mate after going through hell and back.

“Kid, we gotta get outta here.” Drack gruffly clears his throat, reminding them that they were still trapped on an enemy ship, surrounded by a massive enemy fleet.

 ** _Now we rescue my siblings._** Kaarl says. This time, the entire team including Vetra hears him. His voice is slightly tinged with worry unusual for the Yilk voice of reason and logic.

“We need to rescue Aeila too!” Vetra pipes up her arm slung around Sara’s waist.

“I fucking hate these choices. No. We are not leaving anyone behind. Not this time. Never again. Cora, go with Drack and Kaarl. Retrieve its siblings. I’ll get Vetra out of here. We’re not that far out from the exit anyway.” Sara orders. Her face stern.

“Got it.” They nod and move off. Alarms blare around the ship. “Intruders detected.” The Kett announcements roll like thunder through the ship.

 _“Pathfinder, please stand still for a moment while I scan your surroundings. Highlighting best extraction route.”_ SAM says in Ryder’s head. Picking up a vial of the black Kett goo, Ryder checks her map.

“We got about 250 metres of ground to cover and a lot of Kett to go through. You up for it?” Sara looks back at her mate. Concern etched into her features as she takes in the sunken frame of the woman she loves. Her dulled plates and gaunt limbs.

“Lead on my knight in shining armor.” Vetra smiles. Her eyes glowing.

=====

The Turian and her Pathfinder managed to make it back to the detention block unmolested. Sharing soft smiles as they passed door after closed door in companionable silence. Vetra would steal glances every now and again, brushing her body against Sara’s randomly just to assure her that the woman in front of her was actually there and not some figment of her imagination.

“Turn left up ahead.” Vetra jerked her head once they reached a crossroads. Vetra recognised the cell she had been held in for the last three weeks. Her claw marks still marred the metal with their graceful curves.

Stepping back to let Ryder bypass the door, Vetra checks for the transmitter prototype she had built together with Kaarl. Such a powerful piece of hybrid technology was just the advantage the initiative needed.

With a pop-hiss, the door slid open to reveal Aeila laying on her bed. Sitting up quickly and pulling the sheet over her legs, the younger Turian looks at her intruders dumbly. Judging from her dilated pupils, flushed neck and flared mandibles, they must have walked in on her.

“Oh, hi. You must be Sara.” Aeila says, trying to cover up her embarrassment.

Sara opens her mouth but then shuts it quickly. Fearing that anything she said would only make the situation more awkward. Instead just nodding her head in a ‘let’s go’ movement.

Unlocking any occupied cell they come across, they manage to free all the remaining Turians, about 40 in total.

Sprinting towards the exit with the Turians in tow, they turn the last corner and come face to face with an army of Kett. Reflexively throwing up a shield, Sara grunts as a barrage of plasma bolts pepper her barrier. “Get…behind me.” She groans as she pours even more power into the protective bubble, encasing her VIPs. They slowly move forward. The strain on Sara increasing with each step they take due to the sheer amount of fire they’re taking.

Their saving grace comes in the form of a loud yell from above. Drack jumps off an overhanging catwalk, crushing two unlucky Kett below him. Cora rapidly throws warps, lifting the helpless Kett off their feet and letting Drack got ham with his shotgun. Lowering her shield, Sara drops to one knee, catching her breath. Thank god for the biotic amps in her armor. There was absolutely no way she could keep up that shield without them. Grunting a thank you to Cora as the other biotic helps her to her feet, Sara points to the main hangar door. “Only one way out now. The only place the Tempest can pick us all up. Where’s Kaarl?”

“The alien and its siblings are no longer with us.” Cora supplies the answer.

“They’re dead?” Vetra asks. A pang of heart ache shooting through her heart. Kaarl had actually become her friend despite only knowing it for a few days.

“Not exactly. I don’t know how to explain it but they melded together and dissolved into this.” Cora holds up a brilliant green egg. “An egg?” Ryder deadpans.

“Not exactly. They said it’s the combined essence of them three. They wanted us to shoot it to these coordinates. Their ‘collective’ as they called it would take it from there.”

“Ookay then.” Ryder once again steps up the momentum, running and gunning to the extraction point.

Coming up to the thick, armoured bulkhead of the hangar doors Ryder took a breath to calm her racing heart. She knew that past the door, a shit ton of Kett were waiting for her. _One final assault. One final push and Vetra will be home safe._ Ignoring the still burning pain in her side, Ryder nods to Drack to hit the door release. The moment a crack appears in the retracting doors, Kett weapons fire flies through.

Bringing up their barriers, Cora and Sara blaze a path through the Kett. One providing cover while the other throws warps around, letting Drack finish them off with his shotgun and incendiary rounds.

Finally coming to the edge of the hangar, the Tempest swoops in, opening its ramp and allowing the whole contingent of hostages inside. Only once the ramp hisses shut and the Tempest is safely in transit does Ryder allow her barrier to drop.

Hunching over and gripping her knees, Ryder pants heavily. Suddenly she’s thrown against the wall, an unyielding force of love and admiration crushing her as Vetra kisses her hard.

“Hey you.” Vetra barely breathes, her smile too large for her pretty face. “Hey you too.” Sara smiles back. Kissing her soon to be wife tenderly. Setting Sara back down, Vetra lets her eyes roam over her mate, committing the image to memory. _My knight in shining armor._

Once the rescued Turians had been accounted for and their families notified, they were all given access to the Tempest facilities and fed meals full of protein.

Vetra had retired together with Sara to their private quarters where they took their well-deserved bath together.

=====

Lying down together under the covers, the two women rested comfortably in their lover’s arms. Snuggling up to Vetra, Ryder traced a path down Vetra’s cheek and scarred mandible. Pressing soft kisses to her jawline and neck. Simply happy to be in her love’s presence once again.

“You remember when you asked me if I’d brought anything from the Milky Way?” Sara breaks the warm silence.

“Mhhmmm” Vetra hums, too preoccupied with the way Sara’s soft body fits against her own hard one. Basking in the feeling she had nearly convinced herself she would never feel again.

“I actually did bring something. My family’s old record collection. Sadly, I couldn’t bring the vinyl’s so I had them transferred to digital storage.” The Pathfinder continues, baring her neck so that Vetra can lightly nip at it. The warmth being generated by their cuddling rapidly making the blankets too hot to be comfortable.

Kicking off the covers on her side, Sara slips out of her mate’s arms. Waving her Tool over the bedside radio, she invites Vetra to join her once she selects a song.

“This is one of my favourites. It’s an ancient song. Written almost a thousand years ago. Dance with me?” She says, extending her hand. Eyes twinkling.

“Turians don’t dance.” Vetra immediately retorts. The reply not even registering in her brain before its out her mouth.

Rolling her eyes at her Turian, Ryder shoots her, her famous Ryder Half-smirk. “Bullshit and you know it.”

“Fine. _I_ don’t dance.” Vetra admits, taking Ryder’s hand and letting the smaller woman pull them flush together.

“No worries. Master Ryder is here. You will learn quickly young grasshopper.” Sara grins, shifting Vetra’s hands so that they’re in a proper waltz position. Only then does the music start, Bobby Darin’s buttery smooth voice crooning across time and space itself.

 _Somewhere beyond the sea_  
_Somewhere waiting for me_  
_My lover stands on golden sand_  
 _And watches the ships that go sailing_

Slowly moving and leading Vetra in a slow sway, Sara smiles up at the woman that captured her heart.

 _Somewhere beyond the sea_  
_She’s there watching for me_  
_If I could fly like birds on high  
Then straight to her arms I’d go sailing_

Getting the hang of the movements, Vetra feels daring enough to try a move she saw in a human commercial once. Leaning Sara back, she dips her and nuzzles her exposed neck as Ryder lets gravity take hold and relaxes her neck. Arching her back and raising a leg, graceful like a swan.

 _It’s far beyond a star_  
_It’s near beyond the moon_  
_I know beyond a doubt_  
 _My heart will lead me there soon_

Pulling them back to their feet, Vetra lets Sara take the lead this time. Sara tries to spin Vetra around but due to her being much shorter, Vetra has to duck awkwardly under her arm causing the two to burst into laughter before re-joining their arms and continuing the slow sway.

 _We’ll meet beyond the shore  
We’ll kiss just as before_  
_Happy we’ll be beyond the sea_  
_And never again I’ll go sailing_

Taking their cue from the song, the two lovers stand closer, sharing a sweet kiss. Vetra’s hands carding themselves in Ryder’s soft brown hair as the shorter woman tiptoes to return the kiss.

 _I know beyond a doubt_  
_My heart will lead me there soon_  
_And we’ll meet, I know we’ll meet beyond the shore_  
 _We’ll meet just as before_

Whispering to Vetra to close her eyes, Ryder presses a kiss to her nose. Making sure the Turian’s eyes are closed, Ryder steps away. Opening her bedside drawer and taking out the little box containing the little project she had been working on for months before this whole fiasco with Taan and the Primus.

 _Happy we’ll be beyond the sea_  
_And never again I’ll go sailing_  
_No more sailing_  
 _So long sailing_  
 _Bye bye sailing…_

“Open your eyes.” Sara says.

Vetra opens her eyes to see Sara down on one knee. A small black box cradled in her palm. Within which a little circular band rests. Immediately Vetra knows what is happening. Sara is proposing to her. Cupping her hands over her mouth, Vetra lets out a sound that can only be described as a cross between a whinny and a squeak.

“Vetra Nyx, the dashing smuggler that stole my heart from under me. The one thing that never fails to bring a smile to my face and the thing that gives me the drive to keep fighting. My other worldly anchor in this swirling sea of bullshit and life-threatening dangers we call the Andromeda galaxy, will you do me the honour of being my wife?”

Swept up in the current of emotions, Vetra grabs Sara by the armpits and swings her around the room in wide circles, kissing her all the while. Falling onto the bed with Sara underneath her, the overjoyed Turian watches the unsure expression on her love’s face.

“Do I take that as a yes?”

“Of course, you lovable dork! Yes! Yes, I will be your wife.” Vetra shouts for joy, letting Ryder slip the little circle onto her left second finger.

Taking the time to really look at the ring now that she had stopped spinning the two of them around, Vetra is shocked to see that Sara had somehow managed to weave Palaven heart stone in-between two layers of dark and light rock.

“Palaven Heart stone sandwiched between a layer of Dad’s lucky rock from Earth and a layer of the first pebble I picked up in Andromeda. A ring suitable only for you, my anchor across galaxies.” Sara says, her eyes full of emotion and sincerity.

“I love you.” Vetra says, kissing her wife.

_Yes, her wife. That much is certain now._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Tried a different style for this chapter. Instead of switching to first person, I experimented with third person. Admittedly I'm not very good at it so do drop a comment to tell me how I did. Also if you got anything you would like to see in the next chapter, do tell me so.
> 
> I love you all and I'll see you in the next one!


	11. Trouble in paradise

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I apologize in advance if there are any glaring grammar mistakes. I don't know any laws of English or anything, I just write it until it sounds correct. 
> 
> !!!WARNING FOR ATTEMPTED RAPE AND DUBIOUS CONSENT!!!  
> (Not super important to the story, just helps to flesh out my Ryder a bit more. She's gone through a lot in her younger days and deals with it in a quite self destructive way.)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I can safely say it now, OVER 9000 HITS AND 200 KUDOS!!! I just... I can't even. You guys are amazing. I love all the support you have given this fic and me. I never thought little 'ol me could ever garner that much attention. Thank you all so much for sticking with me through the dry spells where I couldn't write because of school and other stuff. (And all the changes in my writing style.) I'm turning 18 in a couple months and breaking the 9000 mark is like a super amazing early birthday present.  
> I'm just so blown away that all I can say is THANK YOU
> 
> PS:  
> My grammar is super shit while writing in 3rd person. So forgive me if it comes out sounding horrible. Had to write most of it while packing to move to my new house.

** No POV (Still experimenting bear with me ; ** ** ) **

_Warm golden sunlight tickled her nose, drawing her out from slumber. Cracking open one eye, Vetra stretched out one arm. Feeling around the bed for her other half. Finding no warm body to snuggle against, the Turian pushes herself up with her arms. Leaning on her elbow while rubbing sleep from her eyes. Bleary eyed, she looks around the room for her mate. Finding no trace of the blue-eyed goddess. Hearing a sound from beyond the bedroom door, the Turian tip toes out of bed and down the wooden stairs. Pausing a moment to actually_ look _at her surroundings, the Turian is initially confused by the use of wood in a house. ‘This must be a dream.’ She thinks to herself. She hasn’t had a lucid dream since she was a little girl. Shaking off her confusion and determined to see where her dream leads her, she finds herself at the bottom of the stairs. The sunlight is in her eyes and too bright for her to make out anything except Sara sitting by a window at the end of the hallway. Her shirt rolled up and a bundle of cloth held to her chest. Walking closer, Vetra sees a tiny hand grasping at her breast. A tiny beak latched onto her nipple and drinking greedily from the life-giving fountain. Vetra stands there, amazed at the motherly scene taking place before her eyes. The extremely maternal scene somehow a rousing her. She thinks of how beautiful Sara looks in that moment, hair messy and clothes rumpled. Face turned away and eyes staring into the distance. Vetra thinks she hasn’t seen a more beautiful sight than Sara engaged in the most maternal of actions. She sees her breasts not as merely a tool to bring Sara pleasure but as a sacred icon of maternal care and affection for their future children. Vetra smiles warmly at the sight. Dream Sara finally seems to notice her, turning to her and returning her beaming smile. The last image of a smiling Sara stays in Vetra’s brain as the dream fades and slips away from her._

Vetra wakes slowly, slipping out of her dream gradually. The murky darkness of the room combined with the warmth trapped under the covers made Vetra feel safe. As if she was still protected inside her mother’s womb. Turning her head to her right, she buries her face in the hair of the beautiful woman next to her. Sinking into the soft silken locks of her love, breathing in the smells that made her, _her._ The smells that remind her of home. Rolling over, Vetra drapes a leg over her lover’s sleeping form, bringing her closer. She wants to preserve this feeling as long as she could.

Wiggling one arm under Ryder’s pillow, and taking hold of one warm, soft weight, Vetra is reminded of her dream as she gently massages one breast. Smiling to herself, she uses her free hand to gently comb through her sleeping beauty’s hair. Running her talons along the shimmering brown strands from scalp to tip. She refrains from grooming her mate, knowing that Ryder wouldn’t appreciate her licking her hair. _We have shampoo for that._ Ryder had complained once, her hands on her hips. Her angry expression unable to mask her ‘dawwwww’ reaction completely.

Taking another whiff of her hair, Vetra took the time to pick apart the smells, content with just lying there, holding the woman she loves. Ryder smelled of Coffee, plasma, baby powder and…blood?

Alarmed, Vetra threw off the covers, checking her mate for any injuries. Finding none, she panicked. Her fingers nearly dialling up Lexi before she spotted the source of the smell. There seemed to be a small spot of blood between Ryder’s legs. Letting out a long sigh to calm her racing heart, Vetra facepalmed. There was no cause for concern. Ryder had simply gone through her heat. A concept that Ryder had explained to her, face pink and ears burning. Without a male, nature took its course. Her own cycle was quite similar. Albeit without the bleeding and only happening twice a year on average. Turians differed from humans in the sense that they could reproduce at any time. Their heat only making them seek out a mate to calm the blood fever. To combat unwanted pregnancies, males evolved the ability to alter their ejaculate, effectively making them temporarily infertile.

Bending over the sleeping woman, Vetra smiled as she realised the brunette had drooled a patch onto her pillow. _Poor thing must have been so tired._ Nuzzling her nose, Vetra placed feather soft kisses against Ryder’s eyes, nose, mouth, ears and neck. Basically, any patch of uncovered skin. Licking the side of her mouth, Vetra giggled as Ryder’s eyes danced behind her eyelids. Betraying the fact that she was only pretending to sleep.

“Wake up Ryder, the sun is bright and shining.” Vetra sang, straddling the brunette’s thigh.

“Fivemorminutes…” Ryder grumbled, turning to smush her face into the pillow.

 _“Ryder, I need you and Vetra in the med-bay right away. I know you’re awake. Don’t make me wait.”_ Lexi’s voice broke the moment.  Grumbling her complaint into the pillow, Ryder pulled herself upright. Leaning her heavy head on Vetra’s shoulder as the Turian knelt on the bed in front of her.

“I don’t want to go.” Ryder groaned.

“But we have to.”

“But I don’t wanna!” the brunette pouted like a child.

“Ryder.” Vetra said sternly.

“Vetra.” Ryder giggled back.

“Lexi, _now._ Get up before you bleed all over the bed. _”_ The Turian pointed to the juncture of Ryder’s thighs.

Ryder growled like a dinosaur, voicing her displeasure. Giving up on trying to drag her mate out of bed, Vetra resorted to other persuasive appeals.

“I’m going to take a shower-” She said, stepping off the bed. Letting the brunette’s gaze sweep over her nude body. “Great.” Ryder said, closing her eyes and leaning backwards onto the bed.

“And you’re gonna join me.” Vetra finished. Sara’s eyes snapped open. The girl out of bed and on her feet before the sheets had landed on the floor. “Even better.” She grinned.

“See? All we need is a little teamwork.” Vetra teased.

=====

Twenty minutes later and the two women are sitting in the good doctor’s med-bay, grumpy and scowling as the doctors poked and prodded at them. Their shower time cut off by a sudden bout of ice cold spray. Of which the neither the Asari nor Dr Little took credit for.

“There is some residue left within your womb but it is inert and should be absorbed by your body harmlessly. You have extensive internal trauma that will need to be taken care of. I will have to reset and repair a few of your ribs and your wrist. The healing serum saved your life but the regeneration was crude and some of your tissue healed wrongly.” Lexi sighs, lifting the datapad and scanner away from the prone Turian’s body. “Don’t worry. I’ll take care of you.” She clutches Vetra’s hand. Dispelling some of the fear swirling in the Turian’s eyes.

“Your stomach lining has fully healed although there are some blood clots still trapped. Surgery will be needed to remove them.” Elsie tells Ryder at the same time. Deactivating her visor with a tap. Sara turns her head to Vetra finding the other woman’s fingers.

“If you both go into surgery now, Elsie and I can have you in and out within the day. Though Vetra might take a little longer.” Lexi notes, turning around to boot up the surgical suite.

“I’ll be right here when you wake up. I promise.” Sara says to Vetra. Squeezing her hand reassuringly as she nods to Elsie to administer the anaesthetic.

“I love you.” Vetra says. Her eyes projecting utmost trust and warmth.

“I love you too.” Sara replies. Feeling unworthy of Vetra’s gaze. Letting herself drop into the cold darkness of unconsciousness she deserves.

Two hours later and Sara is up. Her surgery being completed in record time due to the state of the art medical suite on board the Tempest. Elsie had also taken the liberty to check on and upgrade Ryder’s implants. Improving her connection to SAM and fine tuning her biotics.

Dressing herself in the tight black compression top and shorts Elsie provides, Ryder swings her legs off the bio-bed. Wincing as her stomach muscles burn with the motion. Planting her feet on the floor, she wiggles her toes, letting the cold seep into her, shrugging off disorientation from her mind. Letting her eyes focus on the other occupant of the med bay, she stands up, adjusting for a moment to her wobbly knees before pressing a palm to the quarantine field separating her from Vetra. Numbing static crawls along her skin as she watches Lexi guide robotic arms in a complex dance. She can’t see much of Vetra as Lexi is standing with her back to her, blocking her view but she can see various tubes and wires disappearing into her mate’s body. Ryder chooses not to focus on all that, on the fact that once again, she failed to protect her mate and almost lost her. Choosing instead to look at the beautiful calm expression on Vetra’s face. Looking only at the woman she is going to marry. Trying to bury the guilt building up in her. _Why did I force her to marry me when I can’t even protect her?_

“She doesn’t fault you, you know? No one does.” Elsie says. Putting her tools into the steriliser. Preferring to operate by hand than with robotic assistance.

“But I failed her. I let her get captured. She suffered for me. I…I did nothing but sit in a cell for a month. A MONTH! Don’t you get it? I fucking left her to be tortured on the Primus’ ship for a month while I just sat in a cell, focusing on my hatred of Taan instead of trying to break out and save her. How can she-” Ryder breaks off, exhaling softly. Clenching her fists so tightly her knuckles turn white. “How can she just forgive me like that? I failed her. I-”

“Two reasons. If you can’t tell the first then I don’t know how you got engaged. The second? It wasn’t your fault. Get that through that thick skull of yours. You got arrested. Put in a secure cell with biotic dampers. There was no way you were going to get to Taan in the first place.” Elsie stops short, kneading her temples with her fingers. “Like I even need to tell you this.” She mutters under her breath, continuing to chastise Ryder. “It wasn’t your fault. She forgives you because she knows this. You just have to forgive yourself.”

“What did you say?” Ryder snaps to attention. Whirring around to stare at the doctor.

“You need to forgive yourself?” The doctor offers, eyebrows bunched.

“No, no! The other thing.” Ryder lunges for the doctor. Pinning the other woman’s wrists to the wall. “Before that. You said something about Vetra being…”

“Engaged?” Elsie supplies. Breaking into a knowing smile. “The ring. Not too hard to miss when you must remove it to avoid interference with a bone knitter.

“Does anyone else know?” Ryder presses. Her grip on the doctor’s wrists tightening.

“No. No one except Lexi. She was the one that found it first. I must say that was the first time I’ve seen a nearly 300-year-old Asari squeal like that, and I’ve had a large sample size.” She says, grinning as Ryder visibly recoils. “Not in that way you dolt. Most of them were due to medical related things. Though there were a few…” she says, a teasing lilt in her voice.

“Stop right there. I don’t want to know.” Ryder lets go of the offending doctor. Really rather not learning the sexual history of the person that had no doubt been fingers deep within her body just a few hours ago.

“Ashamed of talking about sex. That’s precious coming from you.” Elsie’s grin grows impossibly wider as she teases a red-faced Ryder.

“And that the cue for me to go.” Sara bolts out the door but not quickly enough to avoid the tight smack Elsie places on her butt.

“Suvi _was_ right. You do have a nice ass.” Elsie laughs. Ryder can’t get to her room fast enough, jumping under the covers to drown her embarrassment.

=====

Ryder silently emerges from her room three hours later. Having made sure that Elsie was nowhere near the med bay. Having had nothing to eat for half a day, she was famished. Scrolling through the options on the food replicator, Sara selects two meals. One for her and one for Vetra. Taking her tray of piping hot food, she leans out the door first. Checking that Elsie is indeed busy talking to her girlfriend on the bridge. Kallo having wisely invested in a pair of headphones to block out the incessant chatter.

Padding into the med bay, Lexi turns around to greet her. “Ah, Ryder. I was just about to call you. She’s about to come around.” Lexi gestures to Vetra where the Turian’s eyes can be seen moving behind her eyelids. The doctor takes her leave, heading to the kitchen for a well-deserved meal.

Vetra’s stunning golden-green eyes open slowly, blinking away the light.

“Hey you.” Vetra croaks. Reaching up to brush Sara’s hair with a finger. Passing her a glass of water, Sara waits for Vetra to finish drinking before clasping her hand and squeezing it tight.

“I’m sorry.”

“For what?” Vetra pulls Sara close, gently running her talons through her human’s hair.

“For everything! For letting you get captured. For not reaching you soon enough. It’s my fault. It’s all my fault. I fucked up. I fucked up so bad. I-”

“You didn’t.” Vetra holds Sara’s face with both hands, forcing the brunette to look into her eyes. “You rescued me. I’m still here. Still breathing. Still alive. All because of you. Don’t ever forget that.”

“How can you forgive me?” Sara cries.

“Not this again,” Vetra grumbles, rolling her eyes and flicking a mandible. Grabbing hold of her mate’s shoulders she roughly shakes the smaller woman. Hoping that some physical reinforcement will help to knock some sense into the woman. “You told me before, it wasn’t my fault. I asked you why and what did you say to me?”

“I…I said it wasn’t your fault because I-I chose to do it. I chose to take the bullet because I love you.” Sara says, tentatively.

“Exactly! Well, close enough. Like you said, I love you. I don’t blame you for getting me captured. Nobody could have predicted that. I don’t blame you for the late rescue okay? I know what Taan did to you.” Leaning in close, Vetra whispers into her ear. “That was awesome by the way. Plus, without the extra three weeks, I wouldn’t have made friends with Kaarl or gotten valuable Kett information. All I care about is that you came back for me the moment you could. Okay? Hey, look at me.” Vetra once again pushes a lock of stray hair behind her ear having been knocked loose by the vigorous shaking.

Ryder flicks her gaze up. Unsure and unwilling to look Vetra in the eyes. Letting out a soft rumble, Vetra finally gets Sara to look at her. Blue eyes watery and lip wavering with barely restrained emotion.

“There she is. There’s my girl.” Vetra trills happily. Smiling as the wind gets knocked out of her when Sara lunges forward and wraps her in a big tight hug.

“Thanks, Vee. I don’t know what got into me. You always know what to say to make a girl feel better.” Ryder smiles softly.

“That’s what I’m here for, _Duo cordibus vestris, anima una_ remember?” Vetra purrs. Nuzzling the back of Sara’s neck.

“Two hearts one soul. I’ve been working on my Turian.” Sara giggles. “So cheesy. I like it.” The human licks the tip of Vetra’s nose, laughing when Vetra snorts and sneezes.

“You forgot to brush your teeth this morning.” Vetra grimaces causing Sara to launch into another fit of giggles. Only stopping when her injuries hurt too much to continue.

=====

Walking onto the bridge slowly, Sara Ryder stands and looks out at the stars. Hands on her hips as Vetra comes up behind her, resting a hand on her waist and her chin on Sara’s shoulder.

“Where should we go next Vee?”

“Anywhere.” Vetra simply states. “You’re the pathfinder. Go pathfind.” She teases. Waving a hand over the console, lighting up the galaxy map.

“Well we still need to drop off the green Yilk gem.” Suvi interjects. Rubbing her neck and pulling her collar up tighter to hide a suspiciously paler spot on her neck.

“Right, almost forgot that. We need to secure an alliance with the Yilk. From what Vetra has told me, they will be extremely valuable allies in the war against the Kett.”

Nodding to Kallo, the pilot’s fingers clatter across the haptic keyboard, inputting navpoints and plotting a course. “Warping to the navpoint in three, two, one, mark.”

The stars blue shift from blue to purple before fading into invisible ultraviolet. At the same time, the background microwave radiation of space shifts into the visible spectrum. Causing the view screens to show the murky blue haze of slipspace.

When the Tempest finally transitioned back to realspace, the drop point was not what they expected at all. Just 10 kilometres from the edge of a black hole. “Kallo!” Sara’s eyes went wide. Shouting at the Salarian in alarm. The little green gem in Ryder’s hand suddenly came to life, lights bouncing around the inside and levitating off her palm.

As if someone threw a switch, a large black shape appeared in front of the black hole. It was moving, straight towards them. “Err, what is that?” Suvi’s jaw dropped.

As if in reply, hundreds of pinpricks of light suddenly blinked into existence. One appeared right beside the Tempest bathing the cockpit in blinding light. The view screens polarised to maximum in response but the light was still painful to look at.

Through squinted eyes, Ryder could see that a shape was fading into view. It looked like a sideways kidney bean but it was made of the same pitch-black material as the huge object. The thing seemed to absorb light which was weird because it was outputting so much.

“That’s impossible.” Kallo glances at his readings again he can’t quite believe them. “They’re building themselves from nothing! It breaks the laws of physics!”

The large black object finally moved away from the black hole and we could see it in its entirety. It looked like a flat disc made from pure darkness but it was just so massive. Easily 30,000 kilometres in diameter. Ryder motioned for Suvi to scan it but the comms specialist was already shaking her head. “Whatever it is, it absorbs any kind of signal I throw at it. I can’t scan it. It’s like I’m scanning a dead zone of absolutely nothing. There’s not even any background radiation.”

“I don’t like this. Kallo get us out of here.” Sara grips the Salarian’s shoulder, her eyebrows creased in worry.

“No, stop! It must be the Yilk. They were supposed to meet us here.” Vetra sternly pushes Kallo’s hands away from the console.

The black kidney bean ship next to us suddenly opened. An orange beam shot out and passed through the whole ship. The beam went back and forth, getting smaller and smaller each time. On the last pass, it stopped and narrowed down onto the gem in Ryder’s hand.

“What do you think is-” Ryder’s sentence was lost to a scream as she collapsed.

=====

She was falling. Falling through an endless void of murky clouds. Like someone had dropped drops of milk into a glass of water. White clouds swirled and drifted around her, forming ethereal shapes in the bright nothingness. Muffled sounds reverberated through the space. The deep rumbles and short clicks reminded her of some kind of language. As if the sounds were words spoken by alien mouths.

_You’re not too far off._

“What?” Ryder spun around, trying to find the source of the voice.

 _Greetings Ryder <Pathfinder> I am Za’kri, the commander of <Cruiser> Kin_ _ä_ _tskxe. On behalf of the collective, I thank you for returning the essences of <exploratory force 341> The information we have learnt is invaluable. As compensation for your service to the collective, I have been ordered to share the following information with you._

_291 days from now, the 26 th main battle fleet of the Kett hierarchy will enter Heleus. The Kett you have encountered up till now have been part of a small scout fleet. When war reaches Heleus, you will not survive. Your Initiative is poorly equipped for war. We have conducted scans of your technology and produced prototype war machines that should aid in your survival. Collective presence in Heleus is minimal. We cannot spare forces from the core worlds. You are on your own. Prepare yourself._

Before Ryder could even open her mouth to shoot off a reply, she found herself back on the Tempest bridge, cradled in Vetra’s arms. Head pounding and stomach twisted in knots.

“Are you okay?” Vetra touches her face as Sara turns over and vomits onto the deck. Groaning painfully as she passes out.

The Yilk ships vanish as quickly as they appeared. Leaving the Tempest drifting on the edge of nothingness.

Ryder woke up a couple minutes later, hurriedly telling the crew about what happened on the Yilk ship. Telling them how she had talked to some kind of Yilk AI that was apparently in charge of a small battlegroup. If the huge 30,000-kilometre-wide ship was considered a cruiser, Sara wondered how large their battleships and dreadnaughts were. SAM interjects and shows them the schematics he had decoded from what the Yilk uploaded into Ryder’s brain.

They appeared to be plans for seven different classes of bipedal weapons platforms. Loosely based off the frame of a Hydra mech, these massive robots required a neural link to their pilots. Capable of orbital insertion and rapid deployment, Ryder could see how these new weapons could help against the Kett.

“Whoa. These machines are titanic. They’re nearly two stories tall on average. Some of the designs need a bit of tweaking but I can totally see them as badass fighting machines. We just need some volunteers to test the piloting systems though.” Gil said, thumbing through the holographic diagrams.

“We’re not soldiers. We’re colonists!” Sara protested.

“We don’t have a choice.” Vetra sighed.

=====

Three weeks had passed since Sara made contact with the Yilk. Leadership was still on the fence about whether to act on the Yilk instruction or not. Most of the colonists seemed resigned to their fate. They weren’t soldiers. They were colonists. Ryder pinched the bridge of her nose and massaged her temples after closing her inbox. The stress of planning for her and Vetra’s wedding combined with the backlash from the public was taking its toll on her.

Thousands of messages had flooded her email. They ranged from angry messages about how she had ruined the initiative before they even got started. Others were desperate pleas for help that Ryder would be able to save them from the impending doom. There were a few hopeful messages from people that promised to help in whatever way they could. And of course, the many, _many_ emails about supplies for the wedding. For some people business went on as usual. Impending war or not.

Vetra looked at herself in the body length mirror of the small flat they had been assigned on the Nexus. She was worried. She had shed her abdominal plates, giving Ryder the excuse that she was just moulting her old plates. The scales on the back of her neck had developed a red tinge that she had been forced to cover up with make-up from Sara’s little black case. Her sexual appetite had increased to the point that it was becoming annoying. She had even jumped Sara in the middle of a meeting, pulling the human into a broom closet for a quickie, not that the Pathfinder was complaining in _any_ way.

She slipped out of the flat, muttering something about errands when Ryder looked up from her terminal. Scarf pulled tight around her neck, Vetra headed towards the temporary clinic.

“How can I help you today Vetra Nyx?” the female Salarian doctor smiled at the nervous Turian.

“I, um. I need a… feminine check.” Vetra mumbled. Her mandibles spread and a blue blush on her neck.

“Ultrasound or…” she offered, gesturing to the array of probes lined up beside the biobed.

“Ultrasound. Ultrasound is fine.” Vetra snorted. Embarrassment colouring her features.

“Alright, let’s see here…”

Having warmed up the lubricating gel, Vetra nervously picked at her cuticles as the woman moved the emitter to and from across her stomach.

“Well, there’s nothing to worry about. You’re pregnant!” the doctor announced. Proudly showing the fist sized embryo growing within Vetra’s womb, pointing out the little bump that would form its cowl and the stubs that would form its limbs. Five minuscule fingers already forming on its hands. From the way its fringe bone was shaped, it looked to be a girl.

“I’m pregnant.” Vetra dumbly repeated.

“Yeah about one month! I had no idea the hybridization project was a success. Congratulations?” the doctor twitched a horn at Vetra’s worried expression.

“It wasn’t. The project failed.” Vetra dumbly replied. Too shocked by the news. She felt the smooth planes of her stomach, staring at the baby on the screen. The baby that was growing within her body. “I’ve not slept with anyone else except Ryder. It must have been…the Kett experiment.” Vetra hesitated before answering the unspoken question on the Salarian’s lips.

“The Kett experiment?”

“When I was captured. They, did things to me.” Vetra said in a small voice. “Thank you, doctor. I, I need… I need to…” Vetra slid her legs off the bed, shoving the doctor aside and walked out the door. Not caring that her shirt was askew.

She made her way back to the house in a daze, head spinning about how she was going to explain this to Ryder. “Spirits help me.”

When she opened the door, Ryder was reclined on the couch dressed in her comfort attire (One of Vetra’s shirts and underwear), feet propped up on the coffee table munching on an apple and typing away on her datapad. The TV was also on, providing the white noise Sara needed to concentrate when she couldn’t move her legs. Sara was so engrossed in her work that she didn’t notice Vetra walk in the door.

She silently let herself into the bedroom, closing the door behind her. Stripping in front of the mirror, she examined her abdomen closely. Searching for any sign that would betray her condition. “I’m pregnant. With Sara’s child. The product of a Kett experiment.” When she spelled it out to herself in such plain terms, the sheer ridiculousness of the situation made her laugh. Except it wasn’t ridiculous, it was the truth.

“Oh hey, you’re back. I didn’t hear you come in.” Ryder poked her head through the door. Letting her gaze roam over Vetra’s nude behind.

“Figured I wouldn’t disturb you. I went to the clinic for a check-up.”

“Aaaaaand?” Sara probed. Coming up from behind, circling her arm around Vetra’s waist and tucking her head under Vetra’s arm. Vetra tensed. Her thoughts warring within her, a heavy weight settled in her chest. “Nothing, just the usual, keep my plates clean and scrub the creases.”

“Pssh, doctors amirite?” Ryder made a flippant motion with her hand, blowing a raspberry and smirking at Vetra in the mirror.

“Yup, Doctors.” Vetra said. Her expression serious. Sara bursts into laughter. “Oh my god, you should see yourself! Doctors.” She imitated Vetra, lowering her voice and pulling a comically serious frown. “Anyway, Drack and the other guys invited us to Vortex later. Y’know, just to chill a bit. Just texted Scott, hopefully Cora can drag him away from the titans long enough,”

Vetra gave a weak smile as she thought about the gigantic war machines. It reminded her of the warning that war was coming. Her pregnancy severely complicates matters. “I’m surprised Cora still puts up with him. You’d think the titan was his girlfriend from the amount of time he’s fused at the hip to it.” Sara continues. Rolling her eyes as she snorts fondly at her nerdy brother.

“Ion. She’s called Ion. He named the titan.”

Sara face palmed. “ Yeap, sounds like something he would do.” Yawning widely, Sara stretched her back. “I’m exhausted, sleep with me?”

Plonking herself onto the bed, Sara spread her arms causing her shirt to ride up, revealing her pink boy-shorts. “Gimme cuddles.” She demanded, beckoning Vetra over.

=====

“So, which do you prefer, Ion or Monarch?” Gil poked Sara in the shoulder. “Neither,” she replied. “I prefer Ronin. He’s fast and agile. Graceful, yet devastating. And that teleport function, it’s just like my vanguard charge. Except I have 40 tonnes of metal and a huge fuckin sword! And that shotgun, man can that thing melt.”

They had decided to name all the titans, it was much easier to compare the different classes that way.

“I prefer Legion, beast of a machine. I don’t know why Krogan didn’t think of it sooner. We would have crushed our enemies during the rebellions. Tonne for tonne, nothing deals more damage than that mini-gun. Especially after some Krogan modifications. We need to design a hammer for it though, can’t risk damaging the gun if we use it like a bat.” Drack downed his ale and slammed the empty glass on the counter. Waving the bartender over for a refill. “You sure you don’t want any Vetra? It’s not like you to refuse a free drink.”

“I’m fine. Just had a check-up and the doctor said no alcohol for a day.” Vetra smiled. Doing her best to dissuade suspicion from her.

“What, you pregnant?” He eyed her suspiciously. Taking a long gulp from his freshly refilled tankard. Vetra tensed under his gaze. She had made sure that her neck was properly concealed and had sprayed copious amounts of perfume to mask her pheromones. There was no way he could pick up on her scent, could he? “Bah, can’t be. Doesn’t smell like it. Heck I don’t know, I think I’m drunk! Damn, Ryder. I can’t drink another. You win.” He guffawed, deep booming laughs as he smacked one meaty fist onto the table. To the answering cheers of the brunette and her friends. Seeing the panic in Vetra’s eyes last for more than a moment, he reeled back. “Wait, are you?”

All eyes turned to her, victory forgotten in an instant.

“Vetra is it true? Are you pregnant?” Sara asked, tears welling in her eyes. Torn between anger and happiness. Vetra

“I’m… yes. I’m pregnant and it’s yours. It must have happened when the Kett… when the Kett experimented on me.” Vetra admitted quietly.

“It’s mine? How the fuck do I know you haven’t been sleeping with some other guy behind my back because as I recall, the project was a failure. We’re incompatible!” Ryder yelled.

Taken aback by Ryder’s accusation, Vetra growled. “How dare you say that. I would never betray you like that.” Her voice low and threatening. “If anyone were to cheat, it would be you. You’re the one with the uncontrollable libido. You’re the one that always needs a pussy to fuck or a thick cock in your cunt. Turians mate for life. There is no way I could conceive even if I did cheat.”

“She’s right. Only genetic material from their mate will produce offspring.” Lexi said stiffly. Trying not to aggravate the already precarious situation.

“Fuck you.” Sara stood up suddenly, knocking her chair over. Teetering away on unsteady legs, she roughly shoved a patron when he got in her way.

“Well, that could have gone better.” Jaal piped up.

“Understatement of the friggin year if you ask me.” Gil added.

“I’m going after her.” Cora announced, leaving the rest of the table to their own devices.

“Another round?” Liam tries to raise the sour mood of the table.

“I need some air.” Vetra declares, stalking out of the bar. “Sorry for spoiling your evening.” She adds after a moment’s pause.

=====

Ryder stumbled down the strip, (imagine the andromeda version of the citadel strip) tits drunk and fuming. “She can’t be pregnant. She can’t be. Even if it’s true, she needs to get rid of it.” She muttered to herself. _The Kett made it. Get rid of it._ The single line of thought repeats over and over in her mind like a scrolling banner on a news channel.

“Oooh, look at the beaut that just stumbled into me arms.” Two large, masculine arms encircled Ryder’s waist from behind. “Looks like the little bird had a little too much to drink.” He sniggered, heavy alcoholic breath hot on her ear.

“Fuck off.” She kicked his knee, spinning around and landing a solid punch to his gut. The man threw up, alcohol and bile narrowly missing her feet. Wiping his mouth on the back of his hand, he stood up and grinned. “We got a feisty one here eh?” More men crawled out from the shadow. Ryder readied herself for a fight but the alcohol was clouding her brain and her moves were sluggish. She managed to deck two thugs before they managed to pin her arms to the wall.

The third thug punched her in the stomach, knocking the wind out of her and nearly causing her to black out. The amount of alcohol she had drunk taking a toll on her. Spitting in his face, Ryder prepared to headbutt him as he sneered at her. “You best save your spit for something else. Your throat won’t be much good to you once we’re done with you.” His cronies joined in the laughter, pulling her arms roughly behind her back, pushing her chest out. “You’ve a nice pair of tits. I can see they’re just waiting to be released.” He unzipped her jacket, revealing the black shirt she wore underneath. She knew what was happening. She knew they were going to rape her. She didn’t care. She wanted it. She wanted to forget about Vetra for a while. They would take their pleasure from her, in exchange, she would take the physical distraction of pain and pleasure.

!!!WARNING FOR ATTEMPTED RAPE AND DUBIOUS CONSENT!!!

The lead thug pushed up her shirt, baring her breasts to the air. She had chosen not to wear a bra because she was wearing a jacket and they always ended up fucking whenever she and Vetra came home from a night at the club. She saw no point in intentionally subjecting herself to mammary torture for just a few hours out with the others.

“Well you’re a right whore ‘aintcha? No bra on walking around with those sensitive nipples pressing into your jacket?” He taunted her, face pressing closer. His stinking lips just a hair’s breath away from her own. She lunged forward and kissed him. The two thugs that had her hands initially resisted but when they saw what was happening, they let go of her.

“What are you standing there for? Aren’t you gonna fuck me?” She goaded the men, taking off her top and cupping her breasts. The men stared at her, open mouthed. At a jerk of her chin, one gripped her by the waist, lifting her up and slamming her hard against the wall. She locked her legs around him and ground her clothed groin against his. “Show me what you got big boy.” Hypnotised by the warmth roiling against him, he simply complied. Reaching down with one hand to unbutton his pants and pull out his cock. Feeling the pulsing warmth of his erection pressing insistently into her thigh, she arched, letting her nipples drag across his chest. “Fuck me.” She purred, gripping his shaft.

Sounds of punches being thrown and bodies hitting the floor reached her ears just before Mr Thug could sheathe himself inside her. The man was suddenly not underneath her anymore. She fell to the ground, knocking her head. Pain exploded in her head and she groaned. Her increasingly muddled mind now bursting at the seams with a violent headache.

Above her stood Cora, eyes flashing with lightning and jaw set in a frown. Her eyes softened for a moment as she realised Ryder was topless. “Are you alright? They were going to rape you.”

“I know. I wanted them to.” The brunette caught the huntress’s gaze. Their eyes locked in a silent battle of wills. “I wanted to forget. At least for tonight. How did everything get so fucked up?” Ryder wailed. Cora kneeled down beside the distraught woman, offering her, her shirt back. Ryder seized the opportunity to kiss the huntress, groping her breast and shoving a knee between her legs. Startled by Ryder’s actions the huntress gaped for a moment. Shoving the offending woman off her, she stepped back. “What are you doing?”

“What does it look like? I didn’t get to finish. I guess you’ll do. Your fingers, your tongue, anything. Inside me. Now.” She ordered, rising to her feet.

“No.” the huntress coolly said.

Ryder shrieked like a madwoman, throwing a punch, aiming for the smug bitch’s face. Hoping to permanently remove her ability to give Ryder that look. You know that _look._ The one that made her want to gouge her eyes out with a hot poker.

Cora easily deflected the blow. Batting it aside as if she was waving off an insect. In the same motion, she slapped Ryder’s ear. Disorienting the drunk woman. A swift kick to the knee was all it took to bring the brunette crashing to her knees. “You fucking bitch! Why do you always have to ruin everything? They were going to fuck me! They were going to make me forget!”

“They were going to rape you. I stopped them. You should be thanking me.”

“I hate you.” She snarled like a wounded lioness, eyes burning with unbridled anger.

“I know.” The huntress replied. Kicking the brunette in the face. _Light’s out._

_!!!WARNING FOR ATTEMPTED RAPE AND DUBIOUS CONSENT! ENDS HERE!!_

=====

Vetra cried. She cried her heart out for the woman that had broken it. The woman that had torn it out of her chest and shattered it into a million pieces. _How can she accuse me of that? Of cheating on her with another man? I would never. It doesn’t work that way anymore. Only she makes my blood sing, makes my senses thrill at her scent. Only she makes my plates part. Only her._

She was in the women’s bathroom. Staring at her reflection in the mirror, having spent the better part of an hour wallowing in her sorrows. She knew Sara wouldn’t have understood. She had asked about her time on the Primus’ ship. Each time Vetra had told her the same tale, of how she met Kaarl and tried to escape. She always left out the details of when the Kett had experimented on her. The memories were too painful and humiliating.

Her sorrow suddenly turned to rage. “She knew what I went through! She knew the Kett experimented on me! Does she not care what I went through?” _Of course, she cared. She asked you. Repeatedly. You didn’t answer._ Her anger turned towards herself. She knew that Ryder was terribly inebriated. The girl had challenged Drack to a drinking contest. The only reason she had accepted was because Vetra had promised to take her home afterwards. She had planned to tell Ryder… eventually. The mother of her child deserved to know everything. She just hadn’t the chance to say anything.

“What do I do with the child? If she can’t accept me, there’s no way she will accept the child. I should get rid of it but I can’t. It’s her child.” She wailed to herself. _It’s all I have left of her._

_There is only one way. I must leave._

=====

Cora carried the unconscious woman through the door. Scott looked up from his table, setting down the circuit board he was working on. Trust him to go straight back to quantum engineering once the booze stopped flowing.

“What happened to her?” He asked.

“Got into a fight and… nearly raped.” She added the last part because she felt Scott had every right to know exactly what happened. Scott’s eyes widened. “She okay?” Cora glanced down at the raised flesh that covered Sara’s right cheek. Her boot was going to leave quite a mark. “Yeah, I think so. Stopped them before they could go any further than her chest.”

“Thank you, Cora. For saving her.” He strode over to her, kissing her and gently taking his sister from her arms. “You’re not the one that should be thanking me.” She said as Scott lowered his sister onto the bed.

Taking off her boots, she shed her clothes and went into the shower. Washing the day’s sweat and grime off her. “She actually wanted them to, you know? Said she wanted to forget.” She caught his eyes in the mirror. “She does that. Stupid and self-destructive.” He sighed, lifting the brunette’s shirt to check for any concealed injuries. When he saw the underside of his sister’s naked breasts, he turned beet red and quickly pulled her shirt down.

“Yeah, I’m gonna leave the check-up and the girl talk to you Stormbird. I have ah, I gotta… I gotta go do something… Yeah.” Cora snorted in the bathroom. “Oh, come now, it’s not like you haven’t seen hers before.”

“Not since we were 15!” He called from the next room. Cora laughed, chuckling at her boyfriend.

Cora sat by the bed, having showered and changed. Waiting for Sara to wake up and start raging at her again.

Sara woke with a groan. “I’m not drinking that much ever again.” She rolled over in the bed and reached out. Clearly expecting Vetra’s warm body to be there. When she found nothing and realised that the room looked different from theirs, she jolted up like somebody had jabbed a cable up her bum.

“Where am I? Vetra?” She called. Turning around, she bumped noses with Cora. “Whatthefuck?” She squealed, scrambling to the other side of the bed. “Why am I in your room? Where’s Scott? We didn’t have sex, right?” She added in a low voice. At a tilt of Cora’s head, she realised she was still fully clothed and absolutely reeked of alcohol. “How long was I-”

“Two hours. Your enhanced metabolism should have burned off most of the alcohol already. I need to tell you this, you really screwed up.” Cora relayed the entire events of the night to Ryder once it became clear that she had no memory of what happened up until just before Vetra had confessed.

“I…fuck what do I do? She’s probably really pissed at me.”

“She’s more hurt than anything. You need to find her, talk to her. Let her explain and then try to work things out.” The huntress squeezed Sara’s shoulder comfortingly.

“Do you love her?” Cora suddenly blurted out.

“What kind of question is that? Of course, I love her! I would follow her to the death!”

“Then you should have no problem accepting her back. What Lexi said was true Ryder, once mated, Turians can only produce a child from their partner. There is no other way.”

“But we can’t! The experiment failed! We’re incompatible.” Sara held back tears, her nose burning with the effort.

“The Initiative failed. Our gene splicing tech is good but still has a long way to go. The Kett on the other hand have had millennia to perfect theirs. We know she was experimented on while in the Kett ship. It’s possible they were successful.” The huntress tried to reason with the woman, pushing her to accept that maybe, just maybe this was fate’s way of giving them what they truly wanted.

“Maybe they were.” Sara said thoughtfully. “I need to find her, talk to her.” She swung her legs out from the bed and strode off purposefully. “Don’t forget your jacket!” Cora called from behind her. “Yes mom.” Ryder teasingly replied, making her way back home.

She managed to keep her tears in all the way to the tram. Once away from the prying eyes of the public and alone in the car, she let herself go and cried. _Will she still love me? I basically called her a lying whore. She’s also pregnant, with my child as she claims but we’re not ready to be parents yet. The experiment was meant for the future. I just hope she’ll still talk to me._

=====

Vetra took one more look around the room, memorising the messy bed and the scent of the room. Even though they only had this apartment for a little over three weeks, the little flat had begun to feel a little like _home._ Complete with all the little domestic memories. The way Sara would stand naked in front of the mirror as she combed her hair, dripping onto the floor. The way she would cry and moan as they made love under the sheets. The way she would gasp every time Vetra hugged her from behind and purred into her ear as she cooked in nothing but a shirt and panties. All her memories had one fixed point. _Sara._

Though most of the house was bare and nearly identical to every other flat, there were little baubles and trinkets all over the place from Ryder’s many excursions. There were also some old datapads and notes left in little neat stacks on the table. Everywhere she looked, she remembered the times she spent with Sara thoroughly christening every piece of furniture. Luckily, they had no neighbours for the first few days as the noise complaints would’ve just been embarrassing.

She paused to look at the bags she had packed. They stood like a dark monolith by the door, heralding a new chapter of life. One that was as dark as their smooth surfaces, one without the radiant light that was Ryder. Gulping back her tears, she resolutely told herself that she wouldn’t cry anymore. She loved Ryder terribly but if she couldn’t accept the child because it was made by the Kett, then she had to do this. She couldn’t bear the thought of killing Ryder’s unborn child So she began to write a letter. Her last, farewell letter to the woman that stole her heart. She started to write, but her words were failing her. She didn’t know how to write of her heart break and yet tell Sara that she still loved her. _I still love you. I will always love you._

Suddenly, the doorbell rang.

Vetra stood up, scurrying over to the door reaching for the touch plate reflexively. She paused just before her hand made contact. Debating whether she should open the door, she stood there like a statue, looking at the view screen that showed a beat up looking Ryder. She could tell that the woman had been crying as well because her lips were trembling and her eyes were puffy.

“I know you’re in there Vetra. I know you can hear me. You’re probably glaring at the door now, looking at the woman that broke your heart, the last person you want to see right now. You probably hate me,” _No I don’t._ “and you probably wish you’d never met such a selfish, broken person like me.” _You’re not. You’re not any of those things._ She looked up at the camera, her eyes boring into Vetra’s own. “And I’m sorry that I hurt you. You didn’t deserve me. You deserve so much better. I just want you to know that I never meant to hurt you. I was drunk and angry about never being able to have a child with you. When you told me, you were pregnant I couldn’t help but think that you had been seeing someone behind my back. I’m sorry. You’re not human, it doesn’t work that way for you. I know that now. I understand if you… if you don’t want to see me anymore. You deserve someone so much better than me.” She finished off, glancing at the ring on her finger. She took it off.

Vetra slammed the door release, grabbing the brunette and kissing her, her tears falling uncontrollably. “Never, I could never hate you.” She whispered into the shorter woman’s hair. They stood in the doorway, held tight in each other’s arms as they let their emotions run their course.

“I’m so, so sorry I hurt you Vetra.” She croaked, her voice hoarse from crying.

“Where is your ring? You were going to take it off.” The Turian asked. Sara opened her palm showing the little metal band that meant so much. The ring had left a deep imprint in her palm from where she was squeezing it so tight. It was then that she saw Vetra’s bags, packed and ready to go. “You were going to leave.” She said, fresh tears threatening to fall again.

“I was, not anymore.” The Turian bumped her head against Sara’s feeling for her ring finger and sliding the band on. “There, back where it’s meant to be.” Sara looked up at her, eyes swimming and they kissed again. The kiss was full of pain and sorrow, both knowing just how close they had come to losing each other.

“I’m sorry, I love you.” Sara said, holding Vetra tight and letting her forehead rest in the comforting warmth of her cowl. “I love you too.” Vetra crooned, resting her chin in the hair of her love, purring contently.

“I’m pregnant.”

_Kiss_

“I know.”

_Kiss_

“With your child.”

_Kiss_

“I know.”

_Kiss_

“A product of a Kett experiment.”

_Kiss_

“I know. I love you. I will be with you for the rest of my days. This child, _our_ child will be proof of that love. Marry me?”

_A laugh_

“I already did.” Vetra smiled.

“Not really, kinda but not yet. Shit! How long is your pregnancy? How big will you get?”

“A little over three months. Don’t worry, I won’t get much bigger.”

“Three months?”

“Yes, our daughter will be here in three months.” Vetra chuckled, Ryder’s terrified eyes growing wide as dinner plates as she began to panic. “I’m not ready to be a mom!”

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Comments, feedbacks plizz. They are my lifeblood. Need to know if I'm doing good or bad because I'm still learning how to write. Do let me know any prompts or things you wanna see I'll be glad to write.


	12. Tying Up Loose Ends

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> One last chapter before the fluff fest that will be the wedding. I really hope you have enjoyed the journey and if it isn't clear by now, I do plan on doing a crossover between Titanfall and ME just for the lulz. Nothing is confirmed yet but it will probably be set a couple years after the initial Kett invasion. I may or may not focus on VetRyder in this. I'm thinking of creating an OC and transplanting the campaign of Titanfall into this universe. But as I said, nothing is confirmed so do tell me if you'd like to see something like that. 
> 
> I am currently working on a oneshot that pits Vetra against the dangers of the Pandorian wilds. (Avatar 2009) so do keep an eye out for that ;)
> 
> Anyway, I'm rambling again but I really, REALLY thank you for being so awesome readers and sticking with me.  
> As always, I look forward to your comments and maybe...kudos? *gives puppy dog eyes*
> 
> Don't be a stranger, say hi!

** Tying up loose ends. **

Too emotionally drained, following a quick shower just to wash the dirt off, they had collapsed into bed and fallen asleep almost immediately. Thus, Sara hadn’t the chance to properly apologise to Vetra. She planned to correct that.

She worked her way down Vetra’s body, kissing her crown, her brows, her eyes, her cheeks. Dipping her tongue into her parted lips for just a moment. She lightly dragged her fingernails over her sensitive cowl. Vetra’s breathing became shallower.

Trailing her warm, wet tongue over the ridges in Vetra’s neck, the Turian’s breath hitched and her eyes fluttered open. “Mmmm, that’s nice.”

Sara continued downwards, licking, kissing and biting her way to Vetra’s most sensitive area, her waist. Licking a trail down from her breast bone to her navel, Vetra arched into her touch. Liquid fire following the path of Sara’s tongue. Reaching the tiny flap of skin that covered her belly button like a hood, the brunette tugged it between her teeth and sucked. Licking and worrying at the sensitive nub with her teeth until Vetra howled with pleasure, thrashing on the bed. “Sarahhnn.” Vetra moaned as she came. Her belly button taking the place of a human clit. Her juices gushed out in jets, pooling on the sheets and staining Sara’s breasts.

“Evangeline, my name is Evangeline. Call me Eva please, you deserve that much. I changed my name to Sara… Eva had too many bad memories attached. I’m so sorry for last night.” The brunette said, sliding her cum-slick body up Vetra’s body and nuzzling into the Turian’s armpits. The earthen, leathery musk of Vetra filled her mind and sent shocks of pleasure to her core.

She straddled Vetra’s waist, letting the Turian feel the blazing inferno radiating from her slick lower lips. Slowly grinding her clit over the sensitive skin of Vetra’s stomach and waist, both women groaned at the intimate contact. Using the segmented ridges of Vetra’s breastbone, she gyrated her hips in a sensual dance stimulating herself just enough for her juices to flow. Today was not meant for her pleasure but for Vetra’s. Satisfied at the slippery sheen coating Vetra’s stomach and waist from her own body, she dismounted and used her lubricant to stimulate Vetra. Massaging her fluids into the skin of Vetra’s waist. Intoxicated by the scent and feeling of Eva’s ministrations, Vetra climaxed quickly. Snorting and bucking wildly as her orgasm raged through her body. Sara tenderly cleaned her mate, licking up all her cum like sweet nectar. The taste of her own juices mixed with Vetra’s causing her clit to throb hungrily. Her cunt squeezing around nothing as her arousal skyrocketed. Taking deep breaths to calm herself, she forced her arousal down by pure willpower. Reminding herself that she wasn’t worthy of it just yet. She needed to please her mate first.

Panting from her second orgasm, Vetra slumped back onto the bed. Her eyes unfocused and hips twitching sporadically. Every inch the well fucked woman. Not letting her lover rest, Evangeline brought the short bulb of the dildo to Vetra’s swollen folds, grazing her entrance. “I need you Vetra. Take me.” She whispered into the Turian’s ear as she let the bulb sink home and activated the toy with a click. Vetra’s hips jerked immediately. The feeling of Sara’s breath and lips on the light blue head of her cock and the feathery light touches of her tongue sent her mind into overdrive. Roughly gripping Eva’s hair, she thrusted, past her lips and down her throat a couple times. Sara gave no resistance. Greedily sucking and licking the shaft, tasting the juices that had beaded at the tip. The taste of her had changed. There was now a more masculine musk mixed in with her feminine juices no doubt because of the toy she had paid a small fortune for. Suckling at the tip, the brunette squeezed and massaged her balls. The toy transmitting the sensations to Vetra’s inner clit and making her knees shake as her eyes rolled backwards. Her hips jerked around wildly, searching for a warm cunt to bury itself in. Sensing the desperation of her mate, Evangeline forced the stiff length down her throat, ignoring her gag reflex and letting her throat naturally massage her lover’s length as she bobbed her head. Vetra tensed, jerking up into a half sit-up as she came with a shout of her human’s name. Hearing her name fall from her lover’s lips, Evangeline backed off a bit, letting Vetra’s release fall on her tongue. She wrapped her lips around Vetra’s pulsing length, sucking every last drop of sweet nectar from her lover. Cupping and squeezing her balls as if they were really part of her body. Succeeding in drawing a few more spurts of delicious cum from her mate.

Throughly exhausted, Vetra collapsed onto the bed, panting hard and cock deflating to rest against her thigh. Sara ran her hand slowly up and down her lover’s length, captivated by how realistic the toy was. It twitched and pulsed according to her touch and Vetra’s heartbeat. She knew it was the best of the best but she was still amazed at how good it was. One would think Vetra was born with it if not for the tiny metal touch plate hidden inside the fake scrotum. Slowly jerking her love back to hardness, Vetra initially protested. “Not again Eva, I need to rest. Let me take care of you now.”

The Turian gripped Ryder’s thighs, pulling her warmth to her mouth and drinking greedily from the spring she found. Sara’s voice caught in her throat as she let out a compliant whine. All thoughts of further denying herself pleasure gone from her mind as Vetra licked and gorged herself on her leaking entrance. “No, I, y-you should be… I nuhhhh…” Sara rested her forehead on the wall as her orgasm took her, blood pounding in her head and her cunt gushing into Vetra’s waiting mouth. The Turian was all too happy to lap up her lover’s juices.

Vetra’s cock soon grew aroused again as the delicious moans and sighs of her mate coaxed her cock to hardness once more. Licking her lips as if savouring a fine wine, she hugged her mate, letting her hardness press into the juncture between her lover’s legs.

“Mnyessss.” Sara hissed as she reached down to position Vetra’s cock against her wet folds. Sinking down onto the hot length and pausing as her insides stretched to accommodate Vetra’s size. Taking her to the hilt, Eva gasped as Vetra’s cock nudged her cervix. The pain sending zings of pleasure shooting through her body. Her blood sang at the feeling of her mate filling her, stretching and claiming her. Pivoting on the rod piercing her willing flesh, Evangeline got on her hands and knees, presenting her weeping sex and tight asshole to her mate as Vetra popped loose from her aching warmth.

Seeing the submissive position her mate had taken, Vetra growled appraisingly. The sound making Sara flush and her pussy leak more. Creating a glistening trail gleamed down her inner thigh to the delight of Vetra. Her clit and nipples stood at attention, burning for Vetra’s touch. Her blood felt like molten lead within her veins. Her core clenching and twitching. Desperately needing to be filled by her mate. She became all too aware of the strong, dominating smell filling the room and making her mind hazy with lust. “Mate me Vetra. I’m yours.”

Seeing her mate present herself in such a sultry way drove Vetra wild. Her blood burned with the heat of a thousand suns, her only respite; the oasis between Sara’s legs. Her womb though already filled with Ryder’s growing seed grumbled in hunger, seeking more of her essence. The toy added a foreign arousal to her system. Her cock ached to be buried within the silky velvet of Ryder’s pussy. With her body reacting to the strong pheromones Ryder was outputting, her mind was overruled and she rutted into Ryder like a teenage male in heat. Jack-hammering away at the woman’s tight hole; focused only on breeding the fertile female in front of her. _But I’m female, I shouldn’t be reacting this way._ Vetra wondered as she watched herself take her pleasure from the woman she loved. Grabbing the swell of her ass and It was an out of body experience as she watched the erotic dance of flesh slapping flesh in the mirror across their bed. Watching as her blue cock vanished into the pink folds of her lover’s quim. Each thunderous thrust producing lewd squelching sounds, accompanied by grunts and moans as they voiced their pleasure in the sacred language of sex and lust. Their tongues dancing with each other as they kissed.

Vetra purred and cooed as her cock swelled, nearing climax. Her knot forming at the base of her cock as she split Ryder’s labia again and again. Sara gripped the sheets, hanging on for dear life as Vetra mated her. Her body arched and tits swinging with every forceful thrust. Her tongue hung out of her mouth, saliva and cum flying everywhere as her head jerked with the motion of her hips.

“Vetra I’m cumming!” She screamed. Her vaginal walls clamping down on Vetra’s length, rippling and pulsing. Drawing the Turian deeper into her.

With an animalistic growl that rivalled that of the mightiest Lion, Vetra claimed her mate. Deep, powerful thrusts that forced her knot into Ryder’s vagina over and over again. Triggering an orgasm in the brunette each time the baseball sized knot popped free from her tight channel. Stars exploded in Sara’s vision as she orgasmed, the unbelievably hot flesh of Vetra’s cock driving her to ecstasy again and again. Her vision doubled and went black as pleasure overwhelmed her. Her body went limp and Vetra’s knot was ripped from the warm embrace of her mate’s wanting body.

Sara tumbled off the bed from the force of Vetra’s misguided thrusts. Vetra pounced on her mate and resumed the punishing tempo, ramming her knot into wet, willing flesh.

With her knot swelling even more, Vetra soon found that she couldn’t pull out anymore. Pumping her hips with short, powerful thrusts, she grunted as she reached completion. The tip of her cock splitting the gates of Sara’s cervix and filling her womb with strings of hot cum. Vetra sunk her teeth into her mate’s neck, marking her and claiming her.

Sara regained consciousness long enough for her to feel Vetra till her and mate her. The tie giving her pleasure far beyond the physical limits of sex. She was being mated by her love. The intimate connection as she felt Vetra’s knot throbbing within her was beyond describing. Her heartbeat in sync with the pulse of Vetra’s knot as she shot spurt after spurt of cum into her.

With her face pushed into the cum soaked sheets of the bed, their combined scents made Sara feel woozy and unbearably happy at the same time.

Each time Sara shifted or rocked her hips backwards, it drew another spurt of cum from Vetra which in turn triggered another orgasm from her. They went on like that, having orgasm after orgasm. Soon Sara’s womb was filled with Vetra’s essence. Her navel bulged a little from the amount of cum filling her womb. Vetra nuzzled and licked her face, purring like a cat and cooing at her throughly fucked and filled mate.

“I love you Evangeline, my mate, the mother of my child.” Vetra said in Turian. Sara felt more than heard the series of clicks and warbles before her implant translated it for her. Somehow the sounds filled her chest with liquid warmth even without the translation.

Vetra plucked as Sara’s nipples, tweaking and twisting the hard buds. Groping and massaging the soft mounds. “Have I ever told you how much I like your breasts?” Vetra asked, her voice sultry. “They’re so soft and feminine. They make me so horny when I dream of you nursing our child. It’s beautiful.”

Sara blushed as Vetra talked. She sounded drunk, her tongue loosened by the hormones and pheromones wracking her body. The pleasant fullness in her nether regions making her glow with happiness. “Ooh!” Sara squealed as Vetra tugged at her nipples again. A stream of warm liquid shot forth from her breasts, dousing their pillows.

“What was that?” Vetra tugged at her nipples again and another stream of milk squirted forth.

“I’m lactating? Wha-? How?” Sara clutched her own breasts, squeezing her tits. More milk flowed, coating her fingers in the sweet white substance. Vetra sniffed the strange sweetness her mate was producing, licking her fingers and tasting her milk. Her cock throbbed against the taste, making Sara gasp as it twitched within her.

“Just like my dream. You’re going to be such a great mother.” Vetra whispered into Sara’s ear as she drew more milk from her mate’s bosom.

With her knot finally deflating, Vetra pulled out from Sara. Her walls clenched and flexed, searching for the completion that was no longer there. With the cum stored within Sara’s body now flowing out freely, Vetra buried her head between the brunette’s thighs, cleaning her mate from her cum. Now used to the Turian mating rituals, Sara just lay still, humming and moaning with happiness as Vetra’s tongue slithered around inside her.

Crashing her lips to Sara’s, she let her collected cum slide down her tongue and into Sara’s waiting mouth. The sound of wet smacking lips filled the air as they swapped their tastes, leaving saliva and cum forming a bridge between their tongues whenever they broke for air.

Spooning the Pathfinder from behind, Vetra licked and cleaned her mate all over. Sara couldn’t find the strength to protest as each lick made her feel so safe and cared for. The Turian’s member soon wormed its way back inside her, the pleasant fullness returning. “I want to stay inside you, makes me feel safe.” Vetra licked the spot behind Sara’s ear causing her to giggle and squeeze with her feminine muscles. The warm pressure on her penis made her knot swell again, locking them together once more. Vetra moved her hips in slow, barely noticeable movements. Just grazing Ryder’s inner walls with a slow pulsing rhythm. Her knot brushing Sara’s clit with each pass, sending soft waves of pleasure through the smaller woman.

Their peaceful post-coitus bliss was interrupted by a loud banging on their door. Sara tried to stand, yanking on the knot buried within her and causing Vetra to shriek in pain. They couldn’t disengage the toy because it was inside Vetra and the tie prevented them from moving properly.

 _“Pathfinder, the individual outside the door is D. Tom Harris, a class 2 shuttle maintenance technician who works the night shift. He is here to make a noise complaint.”_ SAM’s helpful voice chimed in.

The loud banging came again. Whoever was outside the door was certainly furious. “We’re coming!” Vetra shouted to the door as she slowly eased their joined hips off the bed, causing Ryder to let out a pervy chuckle.

Inching toward the door in an awkward four-legged shuffle with their progress halting each time Vetra winced when her knot was pulled by the movement of Ryder’s hips. Sara was also having trouble sending the correct signals to her legs to keep up the forward movement as each step they took made Vetra’s cock bump into her cervix and her heavy balls smack against her clit. Eventually they made it to the door after about two minutes of curse filled shuffling and door hammering.

“What is it? Can’t you tell we’re busy?” Evangeline Ryder glared at the man through the screen, covering her breasts before angling the camera such that only her face and bare shoulders were visible.

“That’s precisely the fuckin point! I work the night shift keeping your damn shuttles flying and I can’t even get a few hours of peace? Twenty minutes or so of hearing you fuck each other I can take. But really, three hours?” His face was red with anger, fingers flying as he scolded the duo. “Three?” Sara checked the time, shocked that they had indeed spent three hours wrapped up in each other’s arms.

“I’m sorry, we’ll ahhh… we’ll try to keep it d-down.” Ryder stammered as Vetra jogged her hips forward. The delicious friction between her legs too much for her feeble brain to work.

“I can’t believe it, you’re even fucking right in front of me!”

“No, we’re nhuuu… we’re not. Nope, not fucking right in front of you.” Sara shook her head earnestly, her long silky brown hair whipping from side to side. She had kept her hair long for the wedding at Suvi’s insistence. Eva’s self-proclaimed hair stylist wanted to do a special braid and needed her hair long. It now extended past her mid-back and could no longer be put in her customary ponytail comfortably. She had learned to braid her hair in a French braid that she rested on one shoulder.

“Go fuck yourselves!” The man flipped them the bird before realising what he said. “No wait don’t! That’s not what I meant. Fuck!” Ryder cut the feed and laughed as she let out a loud purposeful moan, making sure Tom could hear her.

“SAM, do me a favour and turn on the soundproofing. Oh, and order some food. I have a feeling we’re gonna be here a while.” Sara said, plucking at a pert tit while Vetra sped up her thrusts.

=====

“Can I taste you?” Vetra suddenly asked. They had cleaned up after making love for another hour. Finishing the last scraps of her meal, Vetra brushed aside the thin bathrobe covering Ryder’s breast.

“Which part of me?” Sara teased, pushing her chest forward and exposing her pert breasts that had gotten bigger over the course of the day. She spread her legs, drawing Vetra’s attention to her wet slit.

“Your milk. I want to taste it.” She said. A heavy blush colouring her neck. “Turians usually groom their mates and I… I’d like to groom you. If you’re okay with it of course.” Vetra quickly added when she saw the surprised expression on Eva’s face.

“I mean…sure. It’ll be weird at first but I think I’ll get used to it.” Sara agreed and let Vetra position herself at her breast. “I’ve been meaning to ask, how _do_ Turians feed their young?”

“We feed them with a special mucus that we secrete from our cowls until their teeth grow in. Then we feed them with small bits of meat that we partially digest first.” Vetra said as she nuzzled into her mate’s bust.

She began by licking around her humps, cleaning Sara’s underboob which made the woman giggle at the ticklish feeling. Vetra hummed at the clean taste of Eva’s skin. The floral scent and taste of the soap she had used and the underlying scent that was her. The sweet smell of fresh milk caught her nose as a few drops leaked from Ryder’s nipples as her tongue stimulated her breasts.

Trailing her tongue into the valley between Eva’s breasts, Vetra bathed the soft flesh with gentle strokes as she massaged the supple mounds on either side of her face with her hands, coaxing forth more white nectar. The brunette moaned at the tender treatment her soon to be wife was lathing on her.

When Vetra finally latched on to one leaking nipple, Sara squeezed her eyes tight in pleasure as the building ache within her breasts was tamed. The Turian suckled and licked, cleaning and pleasuring her nipple as she drank. “Oh I like how that feels.” The woman stroked the back of her lover’s neck in soothing motions as the other woman drank from her breast.

Having never breastfed before, Ryder’s supply soon ran dry. Her Turian lover simply switched breasts and continued draining her love of her delicious milk. The light sweetness and smooth, creamy texture was pleasing to her.

Swirling the taut nipple around with her tongue, Vetra tongued the tiny hole in her mate’s nipple making Eva squeal and curl her toes. “I think you just made me cum. I’ve never cum from nipple play alone.” The brunette laughed as she played with her other hypersensitive nipple.

It wasn’t long before her other breast ran dry as well. They dressed and left for the clinic. Ryder wanted to see her baby for herself.

=====

“This bump you see here will develop into her cowl or carapace and these two little nubs here are her spurs.” The doctor pointed out the features that made up her daughter in the 3d hologram taken from the detailed scan of Vetra’s womb. The two women had spent a good portion of the remainder of the day in the clinic, doing a thorough checkup on Vetra and the baby that was growing inside her. Their child was healthy and growing well despite her mixed heritage. Already they could tell that she wouldn’t look like a normal Turian child. Their daughter would be unique.

“There’s also the matter of me suddenly starting to lactate. How the hell did that happen?” The Pathfinder asked as the doctor analysed her blood test.

“It seems that it is the result of your body reacting to your Turian mate. In normal Turian couples, when the female falls pregnant, the male will react to her pheromones and undergo some physical changes, usually they grow taller and more muscular. In your case, due to the unique nature of your relationship, your body reacted in the only way it knew how, producing milk to nurse your daughter.” The doctor said as she told Ryder to remove her top.

She proceeded to cup and squeeze her way around Ryder’s breasts. Feeling her feminine glands and checking for any lumps or blockages. Finding none, she attached a hand pump to her teat. Proceeding to steadily milk one measure of Eva’s breast milk for analysis.

“This is so weird, I feel like a cow.” Sara covers her eyes, her cheeks reddening in embarrassment. Vetra simply laughs and squeezes her hand in encouragement.

“Nutrient levels are good. Production is steady for now but will increase once you start nursing. You should be prepared to purchase new bras with proper support as your breasts will only get larger. Trust me on that.” The doctor winked as she let Ryder squeeze her sore boobs back into her top small bra. Her boobs had grown from an average B cup to a more generous C. They were also sore and aching from the rapid expansion and pressure from the milk they contained. She groaned as she finally managed to do up her clasp. Her boobs now formed quite a bit of cleavage even in her standard everyday bra.

=====

R.Sara: _Heyyyyy…_

R.Scott: _Whats up? U and wifey ok?_

R.Sara: _Yeap. We figured it out and had mind blowing make up sex._

R.Scott: _Really didn’t need to know that. So, what do you need now? You never use more than three “y”s when greeting me._

R.Sara: _I need a favour. Vetra’s still at the clinic and I’m busy trying to contact my dressmaker coz I’ll need some last-minute alterations to my dress. There have been some… developments which I’ll tell you about later. TL, DR, I need u to buy me some bras._

R.Scott: _…_

R.Sara: _34C maybe get some D as well._

R.Scott: _wtf does that mean?!_

R.Sara: _Figure it out! ;)_

Scott angrily sets his datapad down. _Women. No, **sisters.**_

Dumbfounded at the cryptic code his sister sent him, he sits down to analyse it. After a good 10 minutes of research, he comes to the conclusion that it must be some kind of measurement for clothes. Similar to tool sizes.

 “Better make sure.” He mutters to himself as he dials up his girlfriend.

“Hello beautiful, I need help with something. You free?”

“Yeah, just a second.” He can hear his stormbrid lower the phone and breathe in. He holds the speaker further away from his ear as he hears her screaming at some rookie. _Poor guy._ “Sorry about that babe, he was being an idiot. What did you need?”

“Sara needs me to buy bras and I-”

“Wait. Your sister, asked _you_ to buy bras.” He could practically see her million-watt smile widening over the phone.

“Yes, she said there have been some developments and she’s busy contacting her dressmaker while Vetra’s still in the clinic.”

Cora couldn’t suppress her snicker which soon grew into raucous laughter. “Wow, this is precious. Think about it like tool sizes, that’s all the hint I’m giving you. Be sure to get those with good support, I have a feeling she’s going to need it.”

“Thanks, Stormbird.” Scott sends a virtual kiss her way.

“Don’t mention it Zero. Love you!” She smiled.

“Love you too.” He said and hung up.

_And now for the nightmare._

Quickly cleaning and packing his tools, he climbs down the ladder after shutting down the titan. Raising his arms over his head, he stretches and pops his spine back into place with a series of satisfying cracks. He gazes up at the titan he’s been working on, admiring his own handiwork.

Northstar, he calls her. The titan is his own design, based loosely on the original Yilk design for a particle beam, he adapted it to Initiative technology and came up with a plasma rail gun with about the same stopping power as a ship based MAC (Magnetic accelerator cannon I.e. a massive railgun) the original chassis was too large and heavy for his liking so he had taken inspiration from the stryder chassis and designed one with extreme mobility in mind.

VTOL jump jets, a cluster missile system for emergencies and tether traps for lining up shots. Northstar was a sniper’s wet dream. After all, Cora had found him testing the railgun one too many times. Visibly aroused.

Sighing to himself, he gives the titan one last loving pat and starts off towards requisitions.

The Nexus having blossomed tremendously now sported a full-scale shopping district that boasted all the brands from the Milky Way. Right now, he had no idea where to get the bras he needed so he headed for the most logical place. Victoria’s Secret.

Racks and racks of frilly, lace underwear greeted his eyes. Standing dumbly in an aisle, he looked around aimlessly as women walked by him, picking and choosing bras and panties effortlessly. He wasn’t blushing he swore but he wasn’t comfortable either.

“Buying underwear for my sister. Not how I imagined my day going.” He muttered to himself as he picked up a bra and checked the label.

75B the label told him. _What the fuck?_ The bra looked to be about the same size as one of Cora’s yet the numbers were massively off what Sara had told him. He must’ve voiced his thoughts because heads whipped around to stare at him. The lost puppy look on his face drew the attention of one pretty woman. She had pink and green hair, shapely hips and a devilish smile.

“You look like you could use some help.” She purred, lightly placing a hand on his chest.

“Uhh, yes please. I have no idea what I’m doing. The numbers, what do they mean?” He showed her the label.

“75B, ah you’re looking at a Dream Angels Wicked unlined uplift bra in the European sizing standard.” She quirks an eyebrow as her smile turns demure. “Buying for someone special?” She asks, a teasing lilt to her voice.

“Ahh, no. Actually, I’m buying for my sister. Can you help me?”

“Sure, just give me her measurements. She tell you why she need them?” The woman walks off once Scott tells her the mysterious numbers.

“No, not really. Just that there were some developments. She would normally get it herself but she’s busy trying to change something with her wedding dress and her wife is still in the clinic.” He shrugs.

The woman stops short. “What you just said makes no sense at all.” She laughs.

“Well, I mean they’ve been mated for like a year already. The wedding is just a formality at this point. Plus, Vetra’s already pregnant...and I shouldn’t have said that. Shit.”

“Wait, Vetra? As in Vetra Nyx? She’s pregnant? How?” The woman suddenly turns around and examines him closely. “Hey, I recognise you now. You’re Scott Ryder! Shit, I didn’t bring any paper. Can I get your autograph?” The woman pulls a sharpie from her handbag and exposes her cleavage and shiny red bra. “It’s not my nicest but it’ll do.”

“Uhh…” Scott looks around apprehensively for any witnesses as a woman has essentially bared herself in front of him in a lingerie shop. Quickly taking the permanent marker from her fingers, he deftly signs his name.

“So that means Sara must be lactating. You’re looking in the wrong store bud. Come on, follow me we need the best for the Pathfinder. And don’t worry, your secrets safe with me.” She grabs his arm and drags him further down the the strip.

“How do you know she’s lactating?” Scott protests as he stumbles behind the greenette.

“Turian mates undergo physical changes when the female gets pregnant. Since Sara’s human, she responds as if she was pregnant, by producing milk.”

“And how do you know this?” Scott asks, incredulous.

Squinting, the woman’s face scrunches up, her cute button nose wrinkling. “Fanficfion.” She says seriously.

Blocking her mouth as if she was telling a state secret, she whispers. “Say, you got any juicy pictures of Sara? You know, For Academic Purposes? She’s hot.”

“I’m her brother.” Scott’s face shows his exasperation and disgust.

“So? I know it’s every brother’s dream of fucking their sister.” Her eyes light up in a frenzy as she bites her lip. _That’s it, my third woman related wtf of the day._

“No pictures, no video. Maternity wear.” He urges her on, reminding her of the whole aim of venturing into uncharted feminine territory.

He walks out the store hours later in a daze. Fingers limply clutching four bags of female underwear. Checking his watch, he notes that three hours have passed. _How the f-_

Shaking off his confusion, he makes his way over to his sister’s house.

Ringing the doorbell, he hears a bang and a muffled curse before the door retracts to show his sister rubbing her toe. Her hair is half in, half out of her bun, hanging over her face and getting in her eye. Blowing off some stray strands, Sara stands up and smiles at her brother.

“Hey, got the stuffs?” She asks, grabbing at the bags he’s holding. He passes them over. “Gimmie.”

“You have no idea what a nightmare it was.” He groans into his hands as he sinks into the couch.

“And you have no idea what it’s like to walk around with melons strapped to your chest that ache and leak all over the place.” She complains, drawing his eyes to her. “I’ve had to change three shirts already.” She pointedly gestures at her swollen breasts that have yet again started to dribble. He swallows thickly as he realises he can see her dusky pink nipples through the steadily growing wet spots on her suddenly too tight shirt.

“You uhh, you should check if I got the right stuff.” He averts his eyes, looking everywhere but his sister’s wet chest.

“Thanks! This is just what I needed.” She says, happily holding up a peach maternity bra. Again, he has to tear his eyes away before they can stray to her leaking bosoms.

Turning around, he focuses on the clock on their mantle piece, watching the seconds tick by. Doing his best to ignore the long, positively sinful moan his sister lets out when she finally gets the buttons done up. The support and compression easing her pain at last.

“Thanks bro, you da best.” She raises her arms up in preparation for a hug, smiling. Pushing off the couch to stand up, his hand comes into contact with something slimy.

Blue, pointed tip, long shaft and egg shaped inner bulb, there’s no mistaking what it is and where it’s been. He grimaces.

“Yeah, you’re gonna wanna wash your hands.” She cringes.

=====

Three months, that’s the closest Eva can move their wedding. Sara chews her lip worriedly as she waits for Vetra to come home. The reason? If Vetra gives birth before they are lawfully wedded, their daughter will be considered illegitimate and not an heir to the Ryder bloodline. Essentially, she would be a bastard child in the eyes of Turian law. That is why Sara is doing her utmost best to ensure that, that does not happen.

Her eyes dart up to the door as it opens. Vetra walks in, a hand resting on her belly. Her mandibles are spread in a wide beaming smile as she captures Eva in a warm kiss. “Hey you, please tell me you have good news.” She says, nuzzling into the shorter woman’s hair when she sees the worried look on the other woman’s face.

“I’m sorry Vee, I could only get them to move it to 87 days from now. Please tell me you’re due after that. Please.” She hugs her fiancé tightly, gripping her carapace like a lifeline.

“Thank the spirits! I’m due 90 days from now.” Vetra sighs happily, tilting her head down for another kiss.

“We need to choose a name!” Ryder suddenly squeals, jumping back from Vetra and grabbing the closest datapad. “Good names for a Turian daughter.” She murmured as she typed.

“A Turian name? She’s half human too.” Vetra flicked her remaining mandible quizzically.

“I figured giving her a Turian first name would make it easier for the paperwork to go through. Plus, Turian names are so cool!”

Vetra hummed and flared her nostrils in thought. “That makes sense. However, her lineage is more important. The Nyx bloodline is dead. Only Sid and I are still alive. None of us are particularly wealthy or powerful. Yours is the only one that makes sense since you’re a hero. She will be a Ryder.”

“Okay, surname Ryder got it. Wait, does that make me her dad?”

“In Turian culture, we can choose to take our mate’s lineage or not. It depends on the standing of that house. But yes technically, you are her dad.”

“That’ll just be weird, her calling me dad. No, we’re both moms in this. You can be called mum while I’m mom. Our daughter is going to have two moms.”

“Getting side-tracked…” Vetra teased in a sing song trill. “We still need to think of a name. Do you want her to have a second name like you?”

“Yeah, I think that’s for the best. Better to embrace her mixed heritage, give her one Turian name and one human one.”

“How about Artemisia? Sounds like a ‘cool’ name and has good connotations in Turian eyes.” Vetra suggests.

“Artemisia…” Eva lets the name roll off her tongue, repeating it a couple times. “Sounds good. How about Elizabeth for her human name? I always liked it.” Vetra purrs and playfully bites her mate. “Hmm… Artemisia Elizabeth Ryder? I like it. Oh, and one more thing. She kicked!” The Turian happily announces before claiming the yielding, shuddering flesh beneath her as they succumb to passion once more.

=====

Her face has become hollower, gaunter. Her plates duller than normal. She is told her baby is growing well within her. The child blissfully ignorant of the havoc it is wreaking on her body. She can feel it. She is getting weaker. The flight of stairs up to their apartment on the Nexus now leaves her winded and panting for breath when before she could dash up it, being chased by Ryder. The two of them laughing and shouting, drawing glares and amused smiles from onlookers. She is sick. She is sure of it.

Her cravings and mood swings haven’t changed but her energy is sapped. Sara laughs it off as mere pregnancy tiredness. She knows better but she just smiles and plays along.

Her back and hip aches are nothing to laugh at though. Her body is still getting used to the extra weight and less space for her other organs as her womb balloons in size together with the growing child.

One month later, she knows something is terribly wrong when she coughs up blood. The blood is not blue like normal but red with a slight purple tinge. She tries to hide it but Sara comes in just at that moment.

=====

Vetra and Eva are once again in the clinic. This time however, their faces are grim.

“How long? How long dammit?!” Ryder finds herself asking that question way too often.

“Six months.” The doctor says. She can see it in her eyes, that look of pity. Ryder hates it. “Come on, were done here.” She grabbed Vetra’s hand. The Turian doesn’t move. She is still too shocked and with good reason.

She has cancer.

Vetra has developed a rare form of Leukaemia a result of the baby’s mixed circulatory system. The Dextro-Levo blood of their daughter has taken its toll on Vetra’s system. Her bone marrow damaged by the mutation that allowed production of the Levo red blood cells that her daughter needs.

“Are there treatments?” Vetra asks the doctor, pleading for any that wouldn’t put the child at risk. Chemo was out of the question and so was radiotherapy, too many variables. Even nanobots posed a risk to the child. But there was a way, stem cell repair. The newer, more costly solution. Their only chance. Their daughter ironically, was the only hope for Vetra. Her umbilical cord contained the stem cells Vetra needed to live. There was only one way, she needed to continue the pregnancy and give birth.

=====

The first time it happens, she is out buying groceries. Ryder is off testing her Titan and preparing the Initiative for war. Due to her advanced pregnancy, Vetra has to avoid any danger. No matter how much she wants to try piloting the new Turian made Titans.

She picks a jar of purple jam off the shelf, absentmindedly checking the label. She is busy thinking of how to use said jam. Maybe Eva would like it with toast in the morning? Perhaps pancakes? Her nose suddenly feels thick and something wet runs down her lip.

Bringing a talon away from her nose, she stares at the blood on her finger. Her vision goes wonky and she collapses.

She is awoken a while later by paramedics and her Sara. The brunette is crying and tightly clutching her hand as they rush to the hospital.

The second time it happens is when she is taking a shower. She has just spent the day walking around Meridian. She enjoys the beautiful jungles and savannahs. As a Turian, her body is only mildly affected by the child growing inside her. Her stomach now protrudes about six inches further than normal. Her plates having shed to give space to the growing child. She is thankful that she can still walk and run despite her heavy pregnancy. She has seen pregnant human women, their bellies so swollen with child they can hardly walk. She is thankful that Turian babies are born small though heavy, usually weighing about 6 kilograms. A result of the limited space within their mother’s body and their much denser plates and bones.

She is washing the dirt from her plates when she sees the blue drops in the water. She wipes her nose with her hand, coming away with blue blood. She screams for help before her eyes roll up and she faints.

The third time it happens is when she is talking to Scott about the new upgrades he plans to add to the titans. Aegis upgrades he calls them.

He is happily spewing engineering jargon and talking animatedly as he tells her his ideas. She only realises she is bleeding when he pointedly rubs his nose even though nothing is there.

She sees blood drop to the floor before she falls into his arms. This time, she is still somewhat conscious and tells him to call Sara.

Her cancer has progressed and her body cannot make enough blood cells to carry oxygen to her brain. The result is spells of nausea followed by unconsciousness. The doctors say it will only get worse. She could develop seizures as well.

Thus, they have moved her to the ICU (intensive care unit) on Meridian, the Initiative’s new base of operations. The inside out nature of the Dyson sphere allows for much greater defensive capability than the Nexus, which has been moved into a geosynchronous orbit with the artificial planet. The Initiative is preparing for war and she knows it.

Her days are spent within the comfortable but dull constraints of her medical suite. Ryder spends her time beside her, sitting in the chair next to her bed. The Pathfinder busy with work but never leaving her side. Vetra has taken over the planning for the wedding as Sara no longer has any free time due to her responsibilities to the Initiative leadership and the constant testing her prototype Titan needs.

She has her first seizure about two weeks after she enters the fourth stage of her pregnancy. Ryder is woken from her sleep by the multitude of alarms from the many monitors attached to Vetra. Her fiancé is arching off the bed, all her muscles tensing and twitching randomly. Vetra’s eyes roll up into the back of her head, one arm clutched tight to her chest while the other bangs against the sideboard. She breathes in long, painful gasps. Sara pulls the emergency cord so hard she rips it clean off the wall while she holds Vetra’s head steady. Making sure the other woman can breathe. She hates how useless she feels, knowing that Vetra is fighting for her life and she is powerless to help. Her tears fall freely as she watches the woman she loves twitch and writhe in her grasp.

The nurses burst into the room, pushing a cart with various vials of liquids with them. One of the nurses says something to the other while he prepares a syringe with a clear liquid. Jamming the needle into the side of Vetra’s neck, he pushes the button and injects the drug into the spasming Turian.

Vetra calms down almost immediately. She slumps back into the pillow, her skin pale and hot.

The doctors propose a C section the next day, they think that by removing the child from her body and quickly using the stem cells from her placenta would be a better course of action for Vetra. However, it is not without risk. The child’s blood could mix with her own and cause a reaction that may very well kill her in her weakened state. Eva flatly refuses saying it’s too dangerous. Vetra seriously considers. It would guarantee her daughter’s life even if it should cost her own.

They fight over it. Bitter barbs are traded from both sides. Both women wanting the best for their child and their future wives. It escalates to the point that Ryder comes home only to sleep on the couch. She cannot understand why they must keep fighting over the child. She just wants the best for both. If they go through with the operation and Vetra doesn’t make it off the table, she doesn’t know if she can cope with the aftermath and being a single mother. _They were so happy only a month ago._

It takes a stern scolding from Sid to get Vetra to see reason.

“She only wants the best for both of you!”

“I know! But if I die before our daughter is born, both of us will die. It is better that she at least has a piece of me.”

“It would destroy her.” She hears glass smashing and two utterances of the same Turian curse. “Please Vetra, don’t do this. I… can’t bear to see my sister die. You owe her that much.” The last part is whispered. Ryder only hears it because of a little help from SAM.

Ryder quickly makes herself scarce, watching the younger Nyx walk out of the door carrying shards of what used to be one of her wine glasses.

Vetra apologises the next day.

Ryder accepts.

They kiss and make love one last time before they must part again. (As per tradition)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> To think this whole fic was initially gonna be a single chapter.  
> Thank you all for reading!!!


	13. A New Beginning (Part 1)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The chapter(s) you have been waiting for.

A New Beginning

=====

Ryder woke with a sigh, turning on her side to pat the spot her mate should’ve been. In her place, Sara squeezed ‘fake Vetra’ the fluffy teddy bear Vetra had bought and scented for her long ago. To be used only in emergencies when she was away or otherwise occupied and couldn’t accompany Sara in bed. _I really need to come up with a better name for you, ‘fake Vetra’ just sounds so wrong._

The distinct clattering sound of a datapad hitting the floor greets her ears as she throws off the covers and stretches. Grumbling as she bends down, her ears turn scarlet. The screen is still on, proudly displaying the rather erotic fanfiction she had been reading.

Ever since Scott had told her about his run in with that _interesting_ woman, she had been curious about what fanfiction people were writing about her and Vetra. She was shocked to find out that most of it was straight up porn. With Vetra gone three days ago, she did the only sane thing. She locked herself in her room, only coming out to eat or when her fingers were too wrinkled.

Her wedding gown _(yes, a gown. She had decided early on to go with a traditional dress when Suvi insisted on knowing who wore the cock in the relationship.)_  was ready and hung by a huge hangar on her wardrobe, waiting for her to put it on and walk down the aisle to her soon to be wedded wife. _Just two more weeks!_

Splashing cold water on her face, her stomach bumped into the Vetra’s toy that was sitting on the corner of the sink. The blue rubbery thing made a host of unclean thoughts rush through her brain. She had taken a liking to the stories with this concept of Alpha, Beta, Omega dynamics. It fulfilled many of her kinks and desires. The thoughts of what class she would be of the world were really like that kept running through her head.

Would she be an Alpha? She was definitely dominant and aggressive. However, she loved being tied and filled with Vetra’s cum. Would that make her an Omega? Or maybe she was a switch?

The vivid images of how the author had described such a world assaulted her. Pregnant Omegas being led along by their Alphas, leashed and marked. Sweet, thick cum being used in everyday food and drink. Everyone naked with not a scrap of clothing to be seen. Unrestricted and open sex laws. She shuddered as she groped her own breast, pulling and twisting the hardening nipple. Her other hand dipping down within her moistening folds.

She backed into the shower, quickly turning on the spray as she swiped at her clit, bringing the bud to attention.

“How I wish you were here so you could fuck me in the shower.” Sara grumbled aloud, opening her eyes to grab the dildo.

Bringing the toy up to eye level, she activated it and checked the battery level. _Enough for one more session._ Satisfied, she activated the dildo’s VI, setting it to self pleasure mode. The fake penis hardened immediately, the flared tip forming into its signature arrowhead shape that was so intensely pleasurable, forcing its way past her cervix so that it could dump Vetra’s fertile seed into her waiting womb.

She swirled the tip around her clit. Once, twice, before slipping the head between her folds, letting her natural lubricant polish the tip. She then began fucking the fake dick, pushing her erect clit into the slit at the tip of the cock. Imagining that her clit had grown into a cock and she was fucking her mate.

_Wait, what am I doing? I can just use the cock._

She fiddled with the controls, turning the dildo into a more human-esque version of a Turian dick and setting the ejaculate conversion rate to high. It was still very much a Turian cock as it massively outclassed all but the biggest of human specimens in both length and girth. She briefly wondered how it had fit inside her so many times before.

The colour had changed to match her skin and the bulb that would go inside her had changed to take advantage of her external clit instead of the internal one that Vetra had. “Nanomorphic tech, so glad I invested in this model.”

Slipping the bulb into her sopping vagina was easy. The dirty thoughts that flooded her mind as she visualised the scenes in the story had made her plenty aroused already.

She had never used the toy on Vetra, instead relying on her own fingers and tongue to bring pleasure to her mate. The foreign feeling of a sensitive cock between her legs was totally not what she expected. Panting slightly as she wrapped her fingers around the thick shaft and pumping slowly, Sara groaned aloud. “This feels so weird and so good at the same time!”

In her mind, the imagined Vetra pinning against the shower wall, nudging her legs apart and sliding into her welcoming heat. Her heavy alpha scent making her blood burn and brain cease functioning. Sara grunted as she picked up speed, thrusting into the soft tunnel that her palms made.

In her mind, she took the place of Vetra, plunging her cock into the sweet depths of her betrothed. Her balls churning virile seed to fill her mate with. Her knot forming and swelling to lock said seed inside her mate’s fertile womb, making sure that she would be seeded when the time came.

Sara thruster faster, her hands squeezing tighter on her cock as it grew under her fingers. Her knot forming and ready to tie. She imagined herself as the Alpha, inhaling the intoxicating scent of her Omega. Telling her to mate, claim and breed what was hers.

Her vision suddenly changed from the vaguely human woman to a figure that was clearly recognisable. Vetra splayed on all fours in front of her, long legs spread wide and pussy dripping around her thick meat. Her knot pushing through her labial plates like a battering ram.

She imagined Vetra purring, head thrown back in ecstasy as her body rocked with each powerful thrust. Her keening cries filling the small shower stall as her second voice declared her everlasting love for Sara. Vetra’s thick scent clawing into her mind and dragging her closer and closer to completion.

“I am yours Eva. Fill me with your pups my alpha.” Vetra said as she climaxed. Her silken walls and rippling and contracting around Ryder’s thick shaft, forcing the Pathfinder to release her pent-up load.

With the added encouragement from Vetra, Sara reached her limit. Leaning her head heavily on the shower wall as hot spurts of come left her cock, mixing with the water still pelting down on her. Her legs going stiff as her muscles tensed with her powerful climax. She could feel her balls tightening up and spraying her seed out like a hose. Her hands continuing to pump her considerable length, milking her balls for every last drop. Gasping as she blinked water out of her eyes, Sara sank to her butt as her thighs and calves began to cramp.

“Fuckfuckfuck.” She panted, gritting her teeth as she slid and writhed on the slippery floor, trying to grip her feet so that she could release her cramping muscles. _That felt so good but shit this fucking hurts. Note to self: don’t masturbate with the dildo while standing._

Once the paralysing cramps passed, Sara was lucid enough to think of the scenario she had constructed in her head. “Not quite accurate to a proper alpha, beta, omega story but whatever, not like I’m a writer. Plus, it was a masturbation fantasy anyway.” She mused to herself, stretching out her legs until they hit the glass.

This caused her to look down, as she naturally needed to arrange her feet, her chin brushing the tip of her semi-erect cock.

_Hmmmm…I wonder._

Her first hesitant lick made her brow raise. The feeling was familiar yet new, her cock seemed to like it though and deposited a generous dollop of pre-come onto her tongue. The taste was actually quite close to the real thing, but the underlying feminine taste still lingered. Once again wrapping her hands around her stiffening shaft, Ryder proceeded to swirl her tongue around the engorged head. Soon, her member was once again at full mast and throbbing with need. Flexing her abs, she thrusted the first four inches into her mouth. _I’m actually giving myself a blowjob. Never in my wildest dream would I have thought this would be how I spent my morning._

The repeated motion of flexing her abs soon grew too difficult for her to keep up. The need for oxygen and the difficulty of breathing while doing a crunch and sucking her own dick proved to be a bit more than she could handle. So, she went back to the tried and true recipe of hands and copious amounts of spit. Reaching down beneath her massive prick, she fondled her balls, feeling the soft hardness of the miniature enzyme processing plants that mimicked the testicles of a male Turian. The artificial nerve network transmitted the feeling back to her, making her dick throb and let out a few quick spurts of cum which she happily licked up.

Massaging and squeezing the large warm weights in her palm, she could feel her climax rapidly approaching. _This is going to be a big one, I can feel it!_

Pumping faster and harder, she reached her peak within a minute. Her balls contracted, pumping hot cum out of her cock and painting the shower wall (and her face) with thick white cum. Her orgasm went on and on, each time a spurt of cum left the tip of her cock, the heavenly tightness of her fingers would coax forth another rope of delicious cream.

Her balls tensed two final times before the spray subsided to weak spurts of fluid. Blinking the cum out of her thoroughly spunk covered face, Sara grinned with perverse joy as she disconnected the toy and began the long process of cleaning off the cum from her body with a dopey smile on her face. _I can’t wait to do that again. Preferably with Vetra on the receiving end._

Her reverie was abruptly broken by the loud ringing of her Omni-tool.

Fumbling about with her cum blurred vision, she swung open the shower door and groped around the little nook at the side of the sink, looking for the offending object.

“Yes? Sara Ryder here.”

“You know, you could at least make it less obvious about what you were doing spending the past 40 minutes in the shower and ignoring _seven_ of my calls.” Suvi’s annoyed voice squeaked in her ear. “I get it. I really do. Vetra’s not around and you gotta tame that famously unquenchable sexual appetite but I called you seven times! SEVEN! Anyway, we’re waiting for you at the new Armax arena to test out Scott’s gen-2 jump jets or did you forget? So get out of the shower, put some clothes on and get your pretty little arse over here now!” Suvi belted out the order like a drill sergeant, cutting the line before Ryder could protest.

=====

“My knees hurt." Suvi complained, rubbing her bruised knees while wiping sweat from her brow. “I think I strained my back.” Liam groans, twisting his hips with a sigh of relief when a series of loud cracks follow.

“I’d much prefer to stay on the ground thanks.” Cora quickly mutters when Scott offers her the second jump pack. “Angara, unfortunately are not made for such acrobatics.” Jaal coolly deflects the offer leaving only the female Ryder twin as the unlucky guinea pig for the second test run of Scott’s Gen-2 jump pack system. The first was a complete failure with all the willing participants either losing their balance when the secondary boost kicked in or running too fast that they tripped on their own feet. Either way, they ended up in a heap, groaning and complaining.

All except for the two Ryders. Sara shrugs her shoulders and takes the offered jump pack.

Weighing no more than 2 kilogrammes, the redesigned jump pack boasted increased manoeuvrability, a higher jump boost and advanced gyroscopes that allowed feats of agility never thought possible with the older generation. It had been designed for pilots to allow them to easily board and disembark their titans while improving their mobility, enabling them to climb, jump and run faster than ever before.

Sara had discovered that by leaning mid-air and planting her feet sideways on a wall, she could effectively wall run. A movement that increased her speed exponentially and combined with a well-timed slide, she could move so quickly that the AI enemies couldn’t keep up with her. Her brother on the other hand…

Combining an advanced cloaking package with the mobility advantage that the jump pack gave him made it impossible for Sara to land a shot. A shimmer here, a footstep there and another high velocity stun round would impact with her chest. Spraying bullets in the general direction of where the shot had come from was utterly useless. He was long gone by the time she had filled his now vacant hiding spot with holes.

Getting frustrated, she fished out a pulse blade from one of her many pockets and flung it blindly at a wall. Immediately, a silhouette in orange appeared on her HUD. Scott was hiding behind said wall, waiting patiently for his sister to poke her head around the corner so he could greet her with another bullet.

_I don’t think so bro._

Wall running to get closer, she jumps off the wall, sliding across the ground and yanking with her biotics sending Scott screaming and flying. Boost jumping into the air, she uses another burst of biotic energy to fling herself further before reversing her momentum midair and tugging on the energy thread still connected to Scott’s ankle completing the curb check manoeuvre.

Scott was still screaming for a couple seconds until he slowly opened his eyes to find that he was suspended a few inches off the ground, blue energy swirling around him.

“Alright, you win. Let me go now please.” He concedes defeat, knowing his sister wouldn’t let him go until he said the magic words. (A lesson he had learnt when they were kids.)

At that, Sara smirks and eagerly drops him the rest of the way down. Silently relishing in the pained “oof” he makes and the clatter of his armor.

“How’d you move like that?”

“Your new jumpkits make it too easy.” The elder Ryder twin feigns a snobbish accent, looking over her fingernails and flicking them at him in a taunt.

“Oh yeah. Well enjoy it while you can, I’m just breaking in my new systems.” The younger Ryder twin promptly throws an arc grenade at her, blinding and shocking her for a few seconds.

_Oh, you’re on._

=====

Vetra was completely relaxed. The soothing cricks and cracks of her plates being massaged made her sigh in content pleasure. Sid and her friends had invited her for a three-day long spa retreat as a modern-day rendition of the traditional pre-nuptial cleansing rituals. So far, the heated pools and steam baths had worked wonders for her nutrition starved plates. Their dull colouring had somewhat abated, her natural glossiness returning slightly. She was still weak and tired easily but the past couple hours of nothing but pampering had alleviated that to a degree. Her cancer was still wracking her body, but she was well enough and had enough energy to move around and interact with the group.

Currently, the other women were stretched out on their own red cushioned massage beds with their masseurs expertly removing any trace of muscle kinks and aches from their bodies. They were in the Olympian wing, a special wing of the spa modelled after ancient Greek bathhouses and specifically designed for the Turian anatomy. Guests of other species were allowed entrance of course but mainly the wing was filled with Turians.

To her right, Aeila grinned at her when she caught her gaze. The younger Turian giggled and squirmed as her Angaran masseur used her bioelectricity to stimulate the deep tissue of her lower back.

Vetra’s attention was then called to her sister on the left. The younger Nyx was panting and moaning under the attentions of her masseur, having signed up for the _extended_ package. Vetra couldn’t partake in the _full relaxation_ offered by the spa because of her pregnancy and the fact that she was already mated. Her body would react badly to any sexual advances not made by her mate, triggering the feral state. With her current condition, such an occurrence could put too much stress on her body and cause her to lose her baby, or worse.

On her right, Aeila squirmed and struggled against her masseur, her lips pressed tightly together in a pained grimace. The young Turian clearly wasn’t comfortable with the strong massage the Angara was giving her but remained silent as the aching release of her taut muscles was undeniable.

Once the massage was over, the ladies tied towels around their waists and moved to the steam bath to sweat out the impurities released by the massage. The large outdoor sauna held a huge wooden cask in the middle filled with steaming hot water. One by one, the women slipped into the heated waters. Mineral salts and scented oils washed across their skin, removing dead flakes of skin and cracked, damaged plates. Vetra leaned against the smooth wood of the hot tub, using her towel to rub off any loosened plates from her arm.

“So Sid, I heard a rumour that some guy was chasing you. What was his name again? Theadus or something? Is it true?” One of Sid’s friends broke the comfortable silence. _Here comes the gossip. I guess there’s no way to avoid it when you’re surrounded by Sid’s friends._ “Someone chasing Sid? Nawwww… he must like super brave or insane or something… No one would be stupid enough to go after the younger sister of Vetra Nyx. I mean, you'd probably get shot or….” A girl with orange markings flippantly remarked. Upon realising that said older sister was sitting in front of her with a curious but deadly stare, her sentence trailed off with an awkward cough.

Brief confusion creased the younger Nyx’s brow plates for a moment. Then her mandibles suddenly flared and a full-scale blush coloured her features. “Thaddeus? Well, yeah I mean he’s cute and all but…” Sid unconsciously scratched at her cheeks.

“But what?” Another of her friends asked. Bright eyed and curious with blue Palaven markings, Vetra knew this girl would never let it go now that the rumour was confirmed.

“I just… I… he’s… I mean he’s like… Gahhh I don’t know, he’s just too cute okay?” Sid admitted covering her face with her hands as her neck flushed bright blue.

“He’s too cute?” Vetra rubbed her remaining mandible, fixing her sister with a intrigued but sceptical look.

“I mean I like him and all, but I can’t stand him he’s too cute, too perfect. Too…him!” The younger Nyx dived under the water, hoping against hope that the murky hot water would hide her and dispel her embarrassment.

“Thaddeus o Thaddeus, your fair maiden awaits. Come win her over, share with her the magic of your charms. Oh Thaddeus, your fringe, your spurs, your waist, so handsome and cute.” The orange marked girl sing-songed in a posh High-Palaven accent.

“Just kill me now, please.” Sideria hid behind her fingers.

“Wait… So you’re telling me that my sweet, innocent younger sister has a suitor and a potential mate?” Vetra cracked her knuckles, voice deep and menacing. Forcing Sid to cower under her towering figure.

“Please don’t hurt him. I really quite like him!” Sid protested as Vetra rose from the water, preparing to stalk off in search of her prey. _Overprotective elder sister? Check. Terrifying aggro pose? Check. Panicking younger sister? Check._

_Que maniacal laughter._

A wide grin broke out across her features as she began to laugh at the stricken expression on her sister’s face. “You’re laughing.” Sid couldn’t believe her eyes. Vetra had been just about ready to storm off in search of Thaddeus and probably skin him alive all for having romantic intentions towards her. _Intentions that she shared as well._

Vetra bounded forward, wrapping her sister in a tight hug, trilling loudly. “I’m happy for you. Truly, I am. You have no idea how worried I was that the Nyx bloodline would die out with me. At least now we will have both.”

“What?! No! I’m not marrying him! At least, not yet. I don’t think…that’s beside the point! I like him, but we haven’t even started dating. I only went through my first heat last year. I’ve never even thought of being a mother.” Sid fires back once she has recovered from her shock and horror.

“I think you’d be a great mother.” Aeila suddenly pipes up, fangs showing while she cackles. Head thrown back in glee, clearly goading Sid into digging a bigger hole for herself. To which the younger Nyx responds with a scathing glare.

“Whoa, blood pressure change.” Vetra says, clutching at her head while her body sways. Slowly guiding herself towards the pool while trying to keep her balance and simultaneously blinking away the darkness clouding her vision took all her concentration. She relaxed slightly when she felt two pairs of strong arms slowly lower her into the water.

“Are you okay Vetra?” Sid’s voice cut through the disorientation and gave her something to focus on, something to anchor herself to. “Yes, I think I’m fine now. Just, momentary dizziness. Everything is okay now.” Vetra shook her head to clear any remaining cloudiness.

“I think we should take it easy from now on. We don’t want you fainting and endangering the baby or yourself any further.” Sid’s orange marked friend said, squeezing Vetra’s arm in reassurance. “But I’ve been taking it easy for the past few days. I can’t take it anymore. I need to do something. I can’t sit around all day and do nothing!” Vetra cried.

“You can, and you will. We are going to show you the true meaning of complete relaxation.” Sideria Nyx drew herself up to her full height, puffing out her plates to appear more threatening. Her friends and allies backing her up as they advanced on the elder Nyx.

“No, you can’t make me! Noooooooooooo!” Vetra’s voice echoed through the marble hallways.

=====

“This is a code Epsilon emergency. Pathfinder Ryder please report to the Titan bay immediately Kett scouts have been detected exiting FTL 12,000 Kilometres from the Nexus. They will breach the defensive perimeter in 1 hour.” SAM roused Sara from her sleep with flashing lights and blaring Klaxons.

“On…my way.” Ryder supressed a yawn, pulling on a bra and quickly donning her under suit. Bruises and muscle aches still covered her body from the intense training session with her brother. “I’m definitely staying in my titan as much as possible today. Don’t want to take on any Kett hand to hand when I’m not at 100%.” Sara mumbled to herself.

Grabbing her helmet from its resting place at the side of her bed, she quickly made her way to the large bay where her titan was waiting for her.

A smile tugged at her lips as she eyed the new tri ocean paint job she had requisitioned for _SAMantha._ Her nickname for the Ronin class titan waiting in the hangar. She was unique, even among the other rare Ronin class titans. She sported an enhanced reactor, additional gyroscopes and a network of redundant micro-thrusters that increased her mobility by 40% as compared to other Ronin’s. The modifications ensured that she was by far the fastest and most agile titan on the battlefield. She was also unique in the fact that instead of the standard VI’s installed in other titans, she held a fragment of SAM. This made her infinitely smarter and more adaptable than any other titan. Her chassis had also been drastically redesigned from the standard Ronin chassis, sporting a much more streamlined profile and more advanced reactive armor. (Scott had taken to calling it the PRIME Ronin chassis) Humans were the only species to create multiple variants of the same chassis. The other species had opted to stick with a single chassis class and create variants that suited their battle strategies.

“Kett scouts were detected by our early warning system 20 minutes ago. Scott is already on his way there, said he wanted to see what new toys the Kett had brought. Dracks’ waiting on the transport with his titan.” Cora relayed the sitrep to Sara without a word from the brunette.

“I am eager to see what these new war machines can do.” Jaal rubbed his hands in glee as he climbed into the transport. The Angaran titans were not yet ready for deployment as their engineers had insisted on taking apart the plans and coming up with designs of their own. As such, their development process was significantly longer than those of the milky way species.

The Asari were finishing up their plans for titans loosely based on the atlas pattern that boosted the biotic potential of their pilots tenfold while providing good mobility without compromising on protection. Unlike the Human take on close ranged offence, the Ronin class.

The Turians were more focused on precision firepower and had also based their designs on the atlas-class chassis. Sturdy enough to carry heavy shoulder mounted cannons while mobile enough to avoid enemy fire and move to strategic positions.

The Salarians had also adopted a more streamlined chassis based on the strider-class chassis. Their hit and run tactics and pin-point laser weapons proved to be devastating en masse. Descending on an enemy like a cloud of locusts and reducing them to molecular dust. As their titans were much weaker than even the human made Ronins, they solved the problem by infusing their titans with regenerative nanotechnology that repaired the machines over time.

The Krogan had taken well to the idea of titans. They had two aptly named variants of the ogre chassis. The Warlord was a towering 60 tonne behemoth that boasted the cutting edge in Krogan weapons technology. Armed with a 30mm rotary cannon that converted to a shotgun at close range, it was capable of tearing its way through a foot of solid steel within seconds. The Krogan devastator was certainly befitting of its name. With a single massive mortar that required the titan to convert to a stationary weapons platform, twin 30mm autocannons to back up its thermite grenade launcher and a missile battery mounted on the shoulder, it was the very definition of overkill. Both were extremely heavily armoured but had little shielding on the back unlike their counterparts due to the Krogan belief of death before dishonour. The lack of shields on their titans were meant to discourage pilots from fleeing battle.

Ryder considered all this as she climbed into her titan. The initiative was now a force to be reckoned with. They were no longer wayward explorers looking for a home, they were Andromeda’s new residents; and they were here to stay. If that meant getting into a 40-tonne war machine and re-living her military days, then so be it. She would fight till her dying breath to protect her wife and child.

“The Kett have already established a forward base here using one of their prefabbed orbital insertion garrisons. Our mission is to take out the communications systems before neutralising the enemy presence here. We cannot let the Kett report back to HQ about our new titans. If they do so, they’ll send in the rest of the fleet. I don’t think I need to elaborate the consequences of that happening.” Sara paced the inside of their Samson titan transport. “Team, standby for titanfall.”

=====

“Kawab, check those power cables. We must be ready before the Indominus arrives.” Kawab’s commanding officer pointed to the mess of sparking cables someone clearly hadn’t bothered to connect properly.

One moment he was running diagnostics and the next he was thrown face first into the oily muck as the sky fell.

Three enormous machines rose from sparking, smoking craters. Each metal monster bore the mark of the blue demon. The Pathfinder was here. Gone was the incessant chatter in his ear that told him what to do, gone was the energy shield that protected them from the Initiative’s weapons replaced with unbridled panic as the metal demons advanced. Slaughtering everyone and destroying everything in their way.

One raised its rectangular rifle and fired at a retreating dropship. It exploded in a fiery thunderball. Bits of gore and metal falling to the ground in a twisted from of rain.

Kawab cheered loudly as one of his comrades brought the anti-air cannon online and fired a shot at the metal demon. It went down, shields flaring, ejecting smoke and fire.

Grabbing a rifle, Kawab charged. The Initiative’s metal demons were frightening but they weren’t indestructible. Kawab screamed and scuttled for cover as another metal demon passed over him. It was like a ghost, there one moment and gone the next. Wielding a massive sword, it stood in front of its fallen brethren and deflected the next shot from the turret, destroying it.

The sword wielding titan then spun around and crouched. From what little he could see from under the crates he was hiding, a small figure leapt out of the metal beast. _The demon._

He sighted down his rifle, but his fingers were shaking too much, he couldn’t get a clear shot.

His terror reached its peak when an even larger metal Titan burst forth from where the barracks used to be, clothed in fire. This titan laughed. It actually laughed when one of his fellow Kett soldiers fired a rocket at it. It shrugged off the warhead as if it were nothing more than a fly landing on one’s skin.

It then pulled out its massive minigun and proceeded to cut down squads of soldiers as if it were mowing the lawn. Kawab did the only sensible thing and ran.

He ran as fast as he could until his legs could not carry him further. The ground under him was lifting up, surrounded in the blue light of the alien’s powers. He knew his time had come.

Brought face to face with this metal demon, he took his defiant last stand, firing blindly with his assault rifle but the metal alien was unfazed and simply crushed him like the insignificant insect he was.

“I think that’s the last of them.” Drack proclaimed, hefting his minigun and resting it on his shoulder as he stood in his opened cockpit, admiring the view of the complete decimation they had wrought on the Kett base.

“Good work everyone. I think we all deserve some R&R at the Vortex. First rounds on me.” Sara helped her brother up. His titan was almost completely wrecked but it was still functional enough to get back to base.

But the male Ryder twin wasn’t having it. “I’m gonna have to pass. I need to take care of my baby first.” He looked mournfully at the burnt-out husk that used to be his titan.

=====

Vetra wasn’t feeling relaxed at all, terrified, irritated, hot. Those were the words that came to mind. Clubbing really wasn’t her idea of fun and relaxation but she forced herself to put on a fake smile whenever Sid would surreptitiously turn her head back to check on her. In all honesty, she’d much rather be back in her suite, wrapped up in bed, one of Ryder’s shirts in her hand with a good book in the other. Sipping a cup of hot coffee while she enjoyed the silence. _That_ was relaxation. Not whatever this was. Jumping, grinding and dancing? Not for her, _thank you very much._  

The heat only continued to build as more and more bodies pressed together in the enclosed space of the resort’s only nightclub. She had to escape the heat, it was becoming too difficult to breathe. Her mind suddenly flashed back to the time she almost lost her mate. The fire and smoke choking her, pressing her deeper into the charred and twisted metal of the broken shuttle. She gasped, grabbing onto the handrail and pulling herself up the staircase step by step. _These are just people. It’s just their body heat. No fire, no smoke, just sweaty bodies and bad body odour._

“Only VIP’s may enter the VIP lounge. No VIP pass, no entry.” The huge Krogan bodyguard stepped in front of the door, easily blocking the entire entrance. Vetra chuckled and shrugged. Clearly This brute didn’t know who she was. “Tell me Krogan, do you know who I am?” She struck a pose for him, checking out one hip. She was wearing a black, backless dress that left her shoulders exposed. An extremely high slit rested just below her left hip, showing off her powerful legs and sensual spurs without exposing her dignity. By Turian standards, she was dressed in extremely provocative High Turian fashion. To avoid any unwanted attention, she had chosen to go without the choker that had come with the set. Instead wanting to show that she was mated. The dress was billowy at the front and shrouded the fact that she was pregnant. The general public didn’t know she was and she wanted to keep it that way.

The Krogan gave her a once over, noting her missing mandible and iridescent black & gold facial markings. Recognition soon dawned on him. “Oh, uhh… My mistake, right this way…er…” _I can tell someone didn’t pay attention to the boss._ Vetra internally rolled her eyes. “Just call me Vetra.” She called over her shoulder as she stalked towards the balcony. Throwing open the doors, she breathed in the fresh cool night air.

The resort was on the edge of explored Meridian, barely 100 metres away from the grounds was raw unexplored and untouched forest. A waiter came by with a glass of cold Papavero fruit juice that she happily gulped down, wiping her mouth on the back of her hand before she realised her faux pas. Ryder was rubbing off on her, and not all of it was good. _I seem to have picked up another of Sara’s bad habits._

The irritating heat that had been prickling on her skin refused to go away though and she leaned her forehead on the cool metal railing to see if that would help at all. Artemisia kicked in her womb and landed a direct hit on her bladder, nearly causing her to lose control and wet herself. “Ow, ow. Calm down, would you? I know you’re eager to see the world but mommy’s not here yet okay, keep it under wraps in there. You know you’re hurting mummy when you do that.” Vetra chided the child within her, rubbing soothing circles into her belly in an effort to get her to calm down.

“Vetra Nyx, long time no see.” Said a cocky, self-assured voice. A voice that could only belong to one person. “Reyes Vidal.” Vetra turned around, flicking her mandible at the charming scumbag.

Shrugging and raising his hands in mock surrender, he continued to walk towards her. Easy grin creasing his eyes. “I’m not here for anything bad. I promise. In fact, I have a proposition for you. See, a friend, of a friend, of a friend of mine said that the Kett are coming back, in force. You know me Vetra, I may be a gentleman, but I am first and foremost a businessman and the Kett coming back is bad for business.” The crime lord extended a business card as easy as if he were offering a cigarette. “I hope we will be able to work together again. Just like old times, eh?”

The handsome human calmly backed away from her, arms still spread in a friendly gesture. “I’ll be looking forward to meeting Artemisia Elizabeth Ryder soon, hope being pregnant hasn’t dulled you too much, gonna need your quick wit.” He stopped short, smiling as he mimed finger guns at her like a cowboy straight out of one of those old wild west human shows, complete with ‘pew pew’ sound effects.

Vetra suddenly felt unwell. Her stomach lurched, and she nearly threw up over the railing. She stood there dry heaving for a minute, trying to control her breathing and push the sick feeling of bile back down her throat. Reyes _knew._ He _knew._ Her daughter wasn’t safe anymore, the criminals of Andromeda knew she was vulnerable. She needed to find somewhere safe. She needed to go _now._

She yanked open the balcony door and ran straight into a pair of mandibles. Only this pair was slightly shorter than hers and instead rammed into her throat, shattering what little control she retained over her turbulent stomach which led her to unload the vile concoction of fruit juice and partially digested meat cubes all over the unlucky individual that had crossed her path. That unlucky individual turned out to be none other than her dear sister which was now covered from head to spur in said unsavoury mixture.

=====

“I’m sorry Sid.”

“Don’t mention it.”

“I was feeling unwell and…”

“Seriously don’t mention it. I don’t think I’ll be able to scrub the stench from my mind and plates anytime soon.”

The younger Nyx sister stood naked in front of the bathroom mirror, busy scrubbing her hands of any _remnants_.

Seeing Sid naked for the first time since her younger sister’s plates had split showed her just how much Sid had matured as a woman. Her hips were wide, and her waist slim. Perfectly proportioned and undeniably attractive to any male and undoubtedly to a couple females too, though that was rare as most Turians were Heterosexual.

The strange heat that had plagued her for the entire evening suddenly resurfaced again. This time the heat was much more localised, right _there._ The throbbing in her core and the itchy fire that was crawling all over her skin told her only one thing. She needed _her._ She needed Sara. Her body was reacting to the lack of her mate’s pheromones. Vetra frantically dug through her bag, searching for the thing she’d packed specifically for this reason, one of Sara’s shirts. The smell of her mate should help to alleviate her withdrawal symptoms. The lack of one’s mate especially during the last few weeks of one’s pregnancy was extremely dangerous. Without the regulating pheromones of their partner, the pregnant female was at risk of hormonal destabilisation. The only reason why Ryder had agreed to do the traditional two-week separation before the wedding was because Vetra had assured her that it wouldn’t be at all dangerous to her because Ryder didn’t produce the pheromones she needed anyway.

She sniffed the old shirt like her life depended on it, as if the faint smell of the woman she loved still lingering on the cloth was a drug.

However, the more she sniffed, the hotter she got until the only thing on her mind was the need. The absolute _need_ to be with her mate. It was all consuming, crawling all over her body and infusing her veins with fire. Burning a thousand times worse than even her most violent heats. Tears sprung from her eyes and her soft whimpering finally caught the attention of her sister.

Sid was panicking, seeing her older sister curling up in pain while a chaotic mess of pheromones and scents battered her senses. She knew her sister was in desperate need of help, but she didn’t know how to help. She didn’t even know what had gone wrong. One minute she was fine and resting in bed, the next she was crying in foetal position. She spied the old grey shirt in Vetra’s hand, the size of it could only fit one petite Pathfinder. Sid’s mandibles spread in realization. _Separation pains._

Such pains were not uncommon and in fact, they were often celebrated. The greater the pain meant the stronger the bond between mates. The Turian mating instinct was strong, biologically hardwired into the Turian genome. That was what the two-week separation was for, to test the strength of the bond and the will of the individuals in that bond. Some couples faced disgrace when they couldn’t resist the pull and ended up breaking their celibacy. Others quickly found their bond fading and realized that they were not suited for each other, though that was rare. Most of the time, couples would go through the two weeks of hardship and come out stronger than before, having suffered together.

The only issue was that Vetra was pregnant. That made the pains much more dangerous for her.

Sid resolved to do the only thing she could, she got on the bed and held her sister. Just like Vetra had done for her all that time ago on Omega. When they had to sleep next to the exhaust vents under discarded cardboard crates in order not to freeze to death. When Vetra would hug her to share her body heat, keeping her little sister warm while she exposed her back to the cold. When she would smile and say nothing was wrong while her chest rattled and wheezed with illness, tirelessly continuing with the backbreaking hard work needed to provide them with at least some meagre form of food. When she would take the abuse and beatings when Sid got caught stealing food.

Sid held her sister and gently rocked her, humming the soothing medley their mother used to sing to them before everything went to hell. When she was still the caring, loving mother. The song was the last precious piece of that past and she willingly shared it with her sister. Her vocals were a little rusty, but she tried, singing each note while she thought about all the times that Vetra had suffered for her. She ignored the sharp press of her sister’s talons digging into her back as she cried into her cowl, her sister was suffering, and her job was to be her anchor for once in her life.

She knew that she couldn’t produce the correct pheromones that could help her sister, only Ryder could do that, so she just held and rocked with her sister, absorbing her wails and providing any measure of comfort she could.

Gradually, Vetra’s cries of pain turned to soft whimpers and her death grip loosened enough for Sid to ease the crick that had been beginning to form in her neck. With her voice thick and hoarse from crying, Vetra found it in her to thank her sister for staying with her. “No problem sis. If anything, I should be thanking you. You were always there, protecting and caring for me on Omega. I can never repay you enough for that. I love you. Get some sleep alright?” Sid smiled and pecked her sister on the forehead, running a talon over her mandible and covering her with her blanket.

Silently, Sid took a set of clothes from Vetra’s wardrobe and left the room, letting her sister sleep off the remainder of her symptoms.

=====

The next few days shot by in a blur, and all too soon Vetra found herself sitting in front of a full body mirror while Sid’s friends buzzed around her, preparing her for the wedding. They polished her plates and brushed her mandible, applied a fresh coat of facial paint and even manicured her talons. She was dressed in a feminine styled traditional Turian suit, keeping in line with the false(?) idea that she was the more masculine of the two. The practical aspect of wearing a suit was that it allowed her to conceal her pregnancy much more easily than if she were wearing a dress. All too soon, she was pushed to the podium where she was to wait for her wife. Her palms were sweaty, her knees weak and her stomach was tied up in knots.

On the other side of the temple, Sara Ryder was experiencing the exact same thing. Scott Ryder roughly clapped his sister on the back, making her stumble slightly. She glared at him, shifting her skirts so that she wouldn’t step on the fabric while she chased after him in ridiculous 6-inch heels. She knew that this was his way of distracting her from her nerves, but it wasn’t helping, not much anyway. After finally clobbering him over the head with a lipstick case, she was promptly restrained by both Cora and Suvi who dumped her in a chair and started fixing the mess she had made of her makeup and hair. She felt uncomfortable. She never wore any cosmetics and at most put on some eyeliner when she went for events. What they were doing now felt as if they were sealing her face behind 10 tons of concealer, foundation and other unidentifiable powders.

While some part of her was focused on the unspeakable terror of being made up like a life size Barbie doll, most of her mind was stuck in an endless loop of frantic panicking. _Remember your lines! She’ll start first, then you say that and…and._

She nearly brought her hands to her temples in her usual way of expressing stress, but a gentle touch stopped her before she could spoil Cora’s work. She turned around and saw a face she thought she wouldn’t see for a long, long time.

“Mom?”

Ellen Ryder chuckled as she wrapped her daughter in a hug that only a mother could give. All warmth and unending love. Sara almost didn’t dare to ask, “H-how? Isn’t it dangerous for you?”

Ellen wiped away a tear that was threatening to fall, cupping her daughter’s face tenderly. “Did’ja really think I would miss my daughter’s wedding?”

“But dad…” Sara held onto her mother tighter, not caring that her makeup was being smudged away. “It’s okay honey it’s not your fault. I know what happened. I made peace with it. He always insisted he would go out on some wayward planet in a heroic blaze of glory. He died doing something far more important, he saved you. Our daughter.” Ellen allowed herself a small glassy eyed smile as she imagined Alec opposite her, joining in the embrace of their daughter. “If he was still here to see you, he’d be telling you how proud of you he is. That, or he’d be telling you how nervous he was on our wedding day. Did I ever tell you that he fumbled and nearly dropped the ring and lost it?”

“But your illness, are you cured?”

“I had a few months to live then, the cryo slowed it down. I think one day would hardly matter. You can always pop me back in the freezer afterwards. Not sure if your wife would like momma Ryder hanging around the place.”

Sara’s eyes widened. “You’re okay with it. Me marrying another girl, and a Turian one on top of that?”

Ellen Ryder grabbed hold of Sara’s ear, squeezing it tightly just like she used to when she was a naughty child. “Tell me the truth, do you love her?”

Sara tried to pry her mother’s fingers away from her ear but just like years past, she found that it was fruitless. “YES! Yes, I love her!”

“How much do you love her? Would you die for her?” Ellen increased the pressure. “I would, a thousand times in a heartbeat!” Sara squirmed, squeezing her eyes shut.

Ellen released her hold, “Then who am I to judge? From what I’ve heard, I shouldn’t even need to ask you these questions. Tell me though, how _did_ you get her pregnant? Everyone I ask either doesn’t even know she’s pregnant or refuses to tell me, saying it’s a ‘sensitive subject’.”

The doors to the dressing room were suddenly thrown open, saving Sara from answering the question. Drack walked in, grinning widely as he fiddled with the cuff of the Krogan-tailored human-styled Tux he was wearing. “They’re waiting for you Ryder. Time for your big moment, heh heh heh.”

=====

Vetra was also panicking internally even though the words were Turian, they were in an older dialect that was easier for Ryder to speak with only one set of lips and one voice box. She ran over the lines in her head again.

_Think of Sara right now, she’s probably worrying over the same thing and she doesn’t even speak Turian. You’ve got to be strong, be strong for her._

Her trance was broken by the music starting, an ancient Human hymn reserved for this exact occasion. Her eyes were drawn to the literal goddess slowly walking towards her and her tongue turned to ash, completely incapable of forming the words she needed. Ryder was simply divine. The main body of the dress was made of a single sash of silk which left one shoulder uncovered, showing off her mark and bared her tone midriff, hinting at her supple hips. She wore white lace gloves and a Veil of Turian Chiffon barely masked her radiant features. The dress was clearly Turian styled and resembled the dress of the ancient Greek culture. Sara was so beautiful Vetra fell in love with her all over again.

It seemed like just a blink later when Sara was right next to her on the altar, blushing under her veil and standing resplendent in white. The very next moment, Addison was asking the older woman holding onto Ryder’s hand something, “Who gives this woman away?” She said. The older brunette replied with an “I do.” The quiet power and decisive strength made it abundantly clear to Vetra who exactly this woman was. She could see similar features between the two women, high cheekbones, bright blue eyes and that same slightly crooked grin. There was no mistaking it, this woman was Sara’s mother.

“Do you come here out of love and of your own free will?” Addison addressed them both.

“I do.” Sara and Vetra answered together, theirs eyes meeting. They were both surprised that they could actually make their mouths form the proper sounds to say the words.

“Very well, we shall continue with the vows.” Director Addison gestured to the crowd, “My friends, we are gathered here today to witness the joining of Sara Evangeline Ryder and Vetra Nyx in matrimony. If anyone protests against this union, may they do so now or forever hold their peace.” A collective wave of glances passed through the gathered crowd as the guests searched for any dissidents. A few heated glances were passed between the Human and Turian members of the crowd, but no one stood in protest.

“Sara Evangeline Ryder, do you take this woman, Vetra Nyx to be your lawfully wedded wife?” Addison looked to Sara.

“I do.” The brunette pathfinder resolutely replied.

“Do you vow to stand by her all the days of her life, in sickness and in health, in good times and in bad?”

“I do.” Ryder said once more, her eyes flicking to Vetra’s.

Addison turned to Vetra, “Vetra Nyx, do you take this woman, Sara Ryder to be your lawfully wedded wife?”

“I do.” Vetra swallowed, answering after a beat.

“Do you vow to stand by her all the days of her life, in sickness and in health, in good times and in bad?”

“I do.” Vetra said, her second voice making clear to all the Turians present how heartfelt and true her words were. Her voice sang of love. True, undying, selfless love. She would die for this woman, go through hell and back for her, travel across time and space without rest to be by her side. Some female Turians in the crowd couldn’t handle the emotion Vetra was pouring out and added their own keens and warbles to the moment. Several males joined in and there was soon an audible thrum vibrating through the air.

“We will now take the traditional Tal’mae rites.” Pathfinder Avitus Rix stepped forward as the Turian celebrant for the next part of the marriage ceremony. Gesturing for the two sword bearers to step forward, he waited for Sara and Vetra to draw their swords.

“By the power invested in me by the Hierarchy in Andromeda and by the Nexus leadership, I invoke the spirit of matrimony to witness this union of flesh and blood between these two women presented before me today. It is a glorious day today my friends. Today we not only witness a bond of love being formed, we also christen this temple as the first temple of life in Andromeda. May the spirits watch over and guide us.” Avitus bowed his head for a moment, joined by a majority of the other Turians in attendance before continuing. “Will those who are to be wedded today raise their swords and recite the rites?”

The two women raised their swords and Avitus wrapped a white cloth around their wrists and waists, the two ends being twined into their sword hilts.

Vetra cleared her throat and began, the built-up nervousness faded to the back of her mind as she recited the words perfectly. “A’Petentia tullia eliir animae oporte meus.”                                                                                                                                               (Give to me your life, your spirit.)

Sara felt exactly the same way. The words came to her tongue effortlessly, the crushing stress she had been feeling for the past few days melted away when the first word left her mouth.  
“Ita meus animae, a’condonia talus.”  
(Thus my life and spirit, I give to you.)

“A’petentia tulla eliir kogitae oporte meus.” Vetra said, tilting her sword forward.  
(I want that your thoughts should be mine.)

“Ita meus kogitae, a’condonia talus.” Sara followed suit and crossed her sword with Vetra’s.  
(Thus my mind, I give to you.)

“A’petentia tulla ellir oporte korporae meus.” Vetra brought her sword hilt to exactly centre between them.  
(I want that your body should be mine.)

“Ita meus korporae, a’condonia talus.” Sara bumped her sword hilt against Vetra’s.  
(Thus my body, I give to you.) In unison, they each took the ends of their cloth in their left hands and tightly grasped the crossed blades of their swords, their hands joining together as their blood saturated the cloth and dyed it a rich purple from their mixed blood.

“Ita meus animae, ita meus kogitae, ita meus korporae, a’condonia eliis.”  
(And thus I give to you my life and spirit, my thoughts, my body.) They said together, eyes glassy at the emotions coursing through both of them in this moment in time.

“Adiunctus meus gensae.”  
(Join, be one, with my clan.) Ryder said, officially welcoming Vetra into her family and bloodline. In a quick, practiced movement, they uncrossed their swords and slammed them into the wooden platform below them. Their swords were crossed, their blood-stained cloth entwined in their hilts and the flowing fabric settling into the unbroken shape of infinity.

“You may now kiss the brides.” Addison happily announced. Even the normally emotionally devoid director couldn’t help but wipe a tear from her eye at the incredibly sweet moment.

Vetra wasted no time and ripped the veil off Sara’s head before kissing her deeply, an action that caused great peals of laughter and whoops of joyous celebration from the gathered crowd. They stood like that for a long while, heads bowed, and lips locked together, basking in the glow of matrimony.


	14. A New Beginning (Part 2)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Warning for blood and gore in this chapter. Also irreparable hole in the heart syndrome has been reported. Reader discretion is advised.
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> Please don't hate me.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I really wanted to post this on Christmas day as a present for you dear viewers to wake up to but my hard drive decided to die and I had to rewrite the entire chapter. I'm so sorry for the nearly two month wait and I swear I won't make it a regular thing. It's been a hell of a ride and I'm glad to have enjoyed it with you all. I hope its not too late to wish you a happy and blessed new year ahead!

** A New Beginning (part II) **

Flanking them, their bridesmaids and “groomsmen” joined in the celebration. On Ryder’s side, Suvi, Elsie and Cora clapped happily while Drack gave a booming Krogan cheer from Vetra’s side. Jaal and Sid gave their own cheers of happiness behind Vetra. Sid’s song was echoed by the many Turians in attendance, creating a resounding crescendo of voices and rumbles that only added to the moment. Lexi and Liam on the floor, raised their glasses in a toast to the newly wedded couple while Kallo smiled happily with his arm around his daughter. Peebee was nowhere to be seen though, the skittish Asari had probably escaped to some secluded corner to save herself from the overwhelming sweetness.

The doors to the wedding chamber suddenly burst open. Kicked apart by a large brute of a man wearing detailed orange armour. A pair of steel grey aviators sat atop his slicked back blonde hair. All square jaw and broad shoulders, the man was the epitome of a 90’s action hero turned villain, complete with a scar across his eye. Charming blue eyes scanned the chamber before settling on the still kissing and oblivious duo.

“Now I hate to intrude friens’ but I’m afraid I must protest against this here weddin’. Not based on my own opinion mind you, I’ve jas’ been paid to. I’m actually all for it.” The man clarified, smiling an honest smile at the stunned duo. “Anyway, I’m really sorry a’boot this but as my art of story teacher always drilled into me; if the story’s gonna be good, the protagonist must suffer. And one thing you should know about me, I just _Love_ a good story.”

Mr Charming then pulled his pistol from its holster, took aim and then everything went to hell.

Ryder felt a stab of pain lance across her ribs.

Vetra crumpled to the floor.

Armed mercs rushed into the chamber, firing wildly at the crowd. People fell, shot dead by others who had made the 600-year trip with them. Colonists looking for a new life snuffed out like the dying embers of a fire. The Andromeda Initiative wasn’t at all like what it was advertised to be.

The crowd scattered, screaming and running around like headless chickens, trampling and pushing over each other to escape the gunfire.

Sara screamed, slamming her hands over her wife’s bleeding stomach. Her white gloves becoming rapidly drenched with blue. Vetra’s eyes were wide and unfocused, her breaths quick and sharp. Any logical training for dealing with a gunshot would totally thrown out the window in her panic. Her bottom lip quivered in unspoken fear. Every sense scrambled in the chaos and her world was reduced to fleeting images of blurry shapes and loud noises. The only constant was the sound of her own ragged breathing.

“LEXI!”

“No time. Move! I’ll handle it.” Elsie shoved Ryder aside, opening her purse and pulling out the emergency first aid kit she always carried and set to work.

Someone called out to Sara, flinging a pistol at her. She snatched it out of the air, blindly firing at the unknown man. Her shot went right through him. He flickered briefly and then became solid again. He twirled his pistol, smartly stowing it away again. “You didn’t think I’d be that dumb di’jya? That I’d be in the same room as the infamous Pathfinder?”

“FUCK YOU!” She fired at the empty spot again and again, emptying the clip as if it could do any actual harm to the man. This unknown man had just signed his death warrant for he had not only ruined the best day of her life but shot her wife and potentially murdered her unborn child.

“Ryder. RYDER! You gotta stay focused, Vetra’s life depends on it. We need to get her to a hospital ASAP. The baby is fine, thankfully. The bullet just missed her but Vetra is bleeding internally. Her blood is slowly mixing with that of the baby. Blood poisoning is almost certainly guaranteed.” Elsie told the shaken pathfinder. “I’ve sent an emergency transmission to the nearest hospital. They’ll be here in 20-30 mins, but I don’t think Vetra can last that long. We need to go now.”

“More mercs incoming! Get going Ryder, we’ll cover you!” Wrex barked, shoulder charging a pillar to create a makeshift line of cover. Jaal fired small bolts of plasma at the sea of mercs that were flooding into the chamber. His tiny sidearm doing little to deter the attackers. “Damn vermin! I wish I had my rifle. I’d make short work of these _vehshaanan.”_

“We need to move her gently. Grab her legs, we gotta get her to cover first.” Elsie instructed Sara. Cora had joined in with Drack and Jaal, lobbing biotic lances and singularities at the ranks of mercs. Liam was busy providing covering fire for the fleeing wedding guests with an assault rifle he picked up from a dead merc. He managed to kill six before taking two rounds to the chest and going down. Suvi huddled behind cover, her makeup streaked and smudged. Covered in dust, the comms specialist sobbed. She wasn’t made for this kind of stressful situations. It was only made worse when gunfire erupted from their side of the wedding hall. Several brave guests had overridden the safeties on their omni-tools and were firing superheated silicone shards at the enemy soldiers. The other pathfinders had also opened fire, laying down heat on the mercs to buy time for the rest of the guests to escape but they were severely outnumbered. Being the only ones allowed to carry weapons for the ceremony, their four guns were nothing compared to the dozens pointed at them.

“We’re pinned down! There’s too many of them!” Cora shouted over the relentless gunfire. The biotic warrior was clearly tiring without the additional amps her armor offered. Each lobbed mass of dark energy was becoming progressively smaller.

“Sara,” Vetra weakly stroked the side of Ryder’s face. “If I die here, I just want to say how grateful I am to have known you and-” Sara cradled her wife’s heavy head, tears cascading down her face. Elsie concentrated on stemming the bleeding as much as she could. If Vetra bled out, there would be no hope of saving her. They could deal with whatever internal damage caused later. Keeping her alive right now was the top priority.

“GET DOWN!” Drack suddenly bellowed, grabbing a chunk of marble pillar and shouldering it like a shield. Elsie heard the soft tinkling of the grenade too late. It went off, throwing her aside like a ragdoll. The hard, sickening crunch her shoulder made when she hit the floor was the only thing she could hear besides the ringing in her ears.

“Fuck.” She cursed when the dust in her lungs caused her to cough. _Two broken ribs, dislocated shoulder, nothing you can’t handle._ She grit her teeth, shaking her head to clear some of the afterimages burned into her retinas.

The world moved in slow motion, people blending into blurry figures. Muffled shouts and screams competed with deep whumps in the background. Elsie felt a shadow pass over her, felt the familiar tingle of an Eezo drive prickle over her skin. She heard indistinct shouts of her name. Her hair shook with the blowback of the engines as the craft took off beside her. _Maybe I’ll just take a nap right here. This pile of rubble is quite comfortable._

“Elsie. ELSIE WAKE UP!” Her eyes flew open. “Oh my god, I thought I lost you.” Suvi gripped her face, the tips of their noses touching. “Vetra, did she and Ryder…”

“They’re fine, they’re on their way to a hospital right now. Kallo hijacked a skycar and flew it through the hole in the roof. You should’ve seen it, it was amazing!” Suvi happily clapped Elsie on the shoulders.

“JESUS FUCK!” Elsie screamed. Her left arm unintentionally shooting forward to punch her girlfriend in the lip. “Shit, I’m sorry.” Suvi said, realizing the awkward angle at which Elsie’s right arm was resting.

“Are there any wounded?” Elsie looked around, immediately focusing on what she needed to do and what medical supplies she had left. The sound of gunfire had stopped so she assumed that the mercs had left and that the area was clear of hostiles.

Drawing in a deep breath, she sat up and carefully manipulated her arm and shoulder, preparing to reset it. _Think happy thoughts. Cute fluffy bunnies. Cute fluffy BUNNIES._ White hot pain stabbed through her as the bone popped back into its socket. The pain was too much to keep contained so she let it out in a dignified string of colourful, lengthy curses.

She spotted Lexi in the distance already setting up a trauma centre, organising wounded people into rows for easier treatment. Elsie forced herself to her feet, hobbling over to the makeshift field clinic and immediately eyed all the injuries, mentally steeling herself for the inevitability that they would lose a few. Two were already dead and four were mortally wounded. There was no way they could save them with the time and resources they had. She instead headed for a man with a large splinter of wood embedded in his chest. He was bleeding badly, and his left lung had collapsed but she if she could stabilize him long enough for the rest of the ambulances to arrive… She just needed him to hold on for two more minutes.

Her eyes met those of the man. “Just stay still. Everything is going to be okay. Just hold on for two minutes.”  
“No. Don’t bother. You’re wasting your time. Save someone else.” The man wheezed, his forehead crinkling.

“I can still save you. Just hold on.” Elsie cut open his shirt to see the full extent of his injuries. His entire chest was shredded, fragments of wood embedded deeply within him. He was right. There was no way to save him. She took his hand pleadingly, like she could physically pull him back from the brink if she tried hard enough.

“You can’t save me sweetheart. Go, save someone else. I’m ready…” The man gave a wide smile, drawing his last breath. His hand slipped from hers with a soft thud. His blank green eyes seared themselves into her memory. Another dead patient. Another face she would never forget. Another failure of hers.

Elsie forced herself to compartmentalize, pushing those thoughts to the back of her mind. She needed to focus on the here and now. She needed to save as many lives as she could. She moved on to the next patient and the next, and the next. Working as fast as her hands could move but it still wasn’t fast enough. The ambulances arrived later, nearly 40 minutes after the incident. Out of the 40 injured people, they only managed to save 33.

It was only after the paramedics arrived did she allow herself to sit down on the sharp rubble, ignoring the sting in her side from her broken ribs as she cried into Suvi’s hair. Seven people had died today. Lexi was sitting next to them quietly, staring at the remainder of the nearly empty whisky bottle in her trembling hand. The Asari was taking it much better than the human doctor but had still resorted to alcohol to deal with the emotional fallout.

Heavy footfalls caused her to raise her gaze from the spot it was burning into the ground. She craned her neck upwards to look at Drack. His huge frame sagged, dripping with weariness. He let himself fall backwards, settling his massive haunches on the marble piller Lexi was sitting on. He gestured for the bottle which Lexi wordlessly passed over. The two shared a soft look of mutual understanding before Drack lifted one tree trunk of an arm and pulled Lexi closer, the Asari settled into his neck, initiating a superficial meld.

“It’s all right. It wasn’t your fault. You did the best you could.” Drack rumbled. He knew the thoughts that must have been circling in her head. If living a thousand years had thought him anything, it was that people needed reassurance in times of grief. This was one of them. Lexi touched her forehead to his and he felt it. The niggling warmth slowly permeating the frost of his heart. Lexi gasped, looking at him with surprise in her all black eyes. Drack smiled a toothy grin, lightly bumping his forehead against hers. Her fingers hesitantly reached for his cheeks, bringing them close once more. Stunned when she let him, curling into his palm like a kitten.

A breath, two and then they both started forward. Letting their lips touch for but a moment before pulling away. Drack looked into the eternal abyss of the void within her eyes, searching for any sign that this wasn’t what she wanted. “I want this Drack. I’ve wanted you for a long time.” She whispered. Kissing him once more. Grabbing her by the waist, he lifted her up and she straddled his waist. They giggled like teenagers on their first date but quickly sobered up. The fact of the matter was that people had still died. A close friend had died.

“Thank you.” Lexi said, sliding off Drack’s lap, her gaze downcast. “Don’t mention it.” The Krogan replied. Deftly catching her before she fell when her left leg gave out, the bullet in her thigh finally catching up to her.

“Shhhhhh. It’s okay. You did good. You did good luv. Rest now, you’ve more than earned it.” Suvi soothed her exhausted girlfriend, stroking the good doctor’s hair as she snoozed against her cleavage.

=====

“Somebody need a ride?” Kallo smoothly guided the sky car to a halt. Hovering just above the dais. “What are you waiting for? Get in!” He chirped, motioning for the rest to climb aboard. Cora projected a biotic shield with the last of her power, helping Vetra into the car with some help from Sid. Jaal jumped into the front seat, sticking his commandeered rifle out the window and providing suppressing fire. Allowing Sara to duck into the car, narrowly avoiding a hail of bullets that burrowed into the metal just above her head.

As soon as they were safely within the car, Kallo floored it. Sending them rocketing out the giant hole in the roof. Leaving Sid to drag and exhausted Cora to safety behind a pile of rubble.

“Aghhhh!” Vetra wrapped both hands around her stomach.

“Just keep pressure on it alright. Hang on Vee we’re almost there. Kallo punch it! Vetra’s not gonna last much longer.”

“N-no. My water…” Vetra groaned, her hips lifting up from the seat. In the dark, Ryder had thought that the increased wetness she felt must’ve been her wife slowly but surely bleeding out. It never occurred to her that it could be anything else. “I think… I think my water broke.” The Turian gasped in pain as another contraction ripped through her. Nearly passing out as the muscles around her bullet wound were forced to contract.

Ryder immediately placed an emergency call to the hospital, getting in contact with the doctor that Elsie had called earlier.

“The stress of being shot must have triggered her labour. The best we can hope for is to delay the birth as much as possible. Moving her while she’s in labour is extremely dangerous, but we may have no choice. Get her to the hospital where we can have a full medical team to look after her. That is your best chance to get them both out of this.” The doctor on the other end told Ryder while the brunette set up the required monitoring apps the doctor had just sent to her.

“I don’t…think I can hold her in. The baby’s coming.  Artemisia is coming… whether we like it or not.” Vetra winced through another contraction.

“Shit. Ok how do I do this?”

“The basic idea is the same as a human birth. We’re still getting a baby through her cervix and out her birth canal. The major difference is that Turian babies are born feet first so as to avoid suffocating the baby once the cowl has cleared the vaginal opening.” The doctor said, while shouting at people offscreen.

Sara pulled down Vetra’s pants and took off her jacket, using it as bedding. If they were delivering a baby, _their_ baby in the back of a hijacked skycar, then the least she could do for her wife was to make it as comfortable as possible. “I love you baby. We’re going to get through this. Just breathe alright, just breathe and push. Breathe and push. That’s all I need you to do. Breathe and push.” Vetra breathed along with Sara, slowing her breathing and heartrate significantly. Until the next contraction hit, and the pain skyrocketed.

“You need to check if she is properly dilated. Her vaginal plates and cervix are the most important factors here. As Turian females have very limited internal space, the baby undergoes great compression forces during delivery. You need to make sure that a head about the size of an orange can safely pass through.” Another Asari doctor in the hologram said. More and more heads were now surrounding the vidlink, gathering to help the Pathfinder deliver her baby safely.

“Easiest way is to check with fingers. If Ryder can fit whole fist inside vaginal cavity, chances of complications during birth significantly reduced.” A Salarian doctor chimed in.

“Hold the fuck up. You want me to WHAT?” Sara jerked towards the screen.

“Insert your fist into her vagina. If you are able to easily do this, she is properly dilated, and the birth will be much less painful for her and less risky for the child.” He blinked his secondary set of eyelids while Sara gave him a _are you fucking kidding me_ stare. His steady blink showed no signs of sarcasm. He was being completely serious.

“Just do it. I’m in enough pain already. The least you can do is get this baby out of me seeing as you were the one that PUT IT THERE IN THE FIRST PLACE!” Vetra growled but quickly quietened when the next contraction hit moments later. Ryder pushed two fingers in slowly, the wet squelching sound and Vetra’s moans and cries of pain the only sounds within the speeding skycar. When she felt no resistance at all, Ryder added a third finger and then a fourth. Finally squeezing in her thumb, she stopped herself from moaning at the feeling. This was the most she had ever been inside her mate. Vetra’s tight silken walls squeezed hard around her digits. Sara would probably have fallen over from weak kneed desire had she been standing. _Dammit Ryder, stop thinking with your cunt and focus on the task at hand! Vetra’s giving birth. The mother of your child needs your help. Get’cher mind out the gutter._

“Okay! I’ve got my fist inside her, now what?”

“Go deeper and see if you can feel the sensory nodes on her cervix. Stimulating the nodes will hasten the birth and prevent further damage.” Ryder shook her head. “Now you’re just fucking with me. Are you sure you’re a doctor ‘cause you sound like a regular old pervert to me.”

“Dayga Loq is a certified gynaecologist. Insulted you would allude otherwise. Proceed with simulation. Reaching orgasm will aid in ejection of foetus. Orgasm will also release blood chemicals that may increase mother’s chance of survival.” The Salarian explained, irritation colouring his features at the unfounded accusation from the Pathfinder.

Vetra felt like screaming but she no longer had the energy to do so. Her head was pounding, and her heart felt like to was about to explode. The pain inside her was worse than anything she had experienced prior. Even the pain from the gunshot wound paled in comparison to what she felt now. The warm friction of Sara’s arm inside her kept her from falling over the edge and letting the void take her. Her arm anchored her to the present, lowering the pain just for a moment. Until the next contraction hit, and the cycle of pain started all over again. Sweat, tears and blood soaked whatever clothes she had left. He talons left deep gouges in the leather upholstery of the driver’s seat. Sponge stuffing clung to her bloody talons while particles of released foam stuck to her face and plates in irritating clumps.

“Spirits, I don’t think I can do this Ryder.” Vetra panted. The pain was becoming too much. Even the pleasure from Ryder’s arm and fingers was waning. Pain was short circuiting her senses, time and space became irrelevant. Her consciousness narrowed to three things. The pain, the baby and Sara’s hot breath on her.

The Salarian doctor popped back onto the screen. “Emotional state irrelevant. Birth must occur within next six minutes. Placental abruption detected. Infant’s oxygen supply compromised, brain damage risk increasing. Recommend either hasten arrival to hospital or manual extraction of infant.”

Ryder cursed. “Step on it Kallo! She’s losing too much blood and the baby’s suffocating. I won’t lose my firstborn because of you.”

“I’m going as fast as I can Ryder. Engine two got damaged during takeoff.” Sara turned back to her wife. Vetra’s face was pale and sweat beaded on her mandibles. Her eyes lolling around in her eye sockets. “Fuck!”

“This is taking too long. Turian births usually are much quicker. Get me a scan Ryder.” The first female doctor checked the scan. “Ok. Vetra’s nearly there. The baby’s waist has cleared her cervix, but her torso and head are larger than a normal Turian’s. She’s stuck Ryder. I need you to pull her out. Do it quick before Vetra’s cervical tissue closes around the baby’s throat.” Sara looked into her wife’s eyes for confirmation. She had no idea how much more pain it would cause her wife. She was already in so much pain.

“Just… do it.” Vetra hissed through gritted teeth.

Sara cupped her mandible, their foreheads almost touching as she reached within her, grabbing the legs of their daughter. “I love you.” She said and pulled.

With one more heave from Vetra and a tremendous tug from Sara, Artemisia Elizabeth Ryder was born in the backseat of a stolen skycar. Covered in blood, amniotic fluid and blue gunk but she wasn’t screaming, or breathing for that matter.

Seconds passed by, each one longer than the last as the two mothers waited for their child to take her first breath.

“She’s not crying. My baby’s not crying.” Sara trembled. Fear icing over her heart that all of Vetra’s suffering was for naught.

“Turian…babies don’t cry, they-” Vetra mumbled as her eyes closed, succumbing to exhaustion.

“They vomit Ryder. Hold her upside down. It should aid in expulsion of amniotic fluid from her lungs.” One of the doctors said. Sara’s lip quivered, waves of helplessness and dread crashed against her in endless rows. “Nothing’s happening. She’s not breathing.” Panic mounted within her as the seconds ticked by without any sign of life from the tiny body cradled in her arms.

“Artemisia, my baby. Please wake up. Mommy loves you. Mommy needs you to breathe okay. Open those beautiful eyes of yours and scream. Scream as loud as you can. Please.” Sara cracked. Tears spilling from her eyes as her baby seemed all but responsive, stillborn after months of emotional and physical hardship. Pain stabbed through her heart, more pain than she had ever felt in her life more even than being impaled. “Please… Please…” she pleaded with fate, promising anything for her daughter’s life.

Mother cradled child, head bowed and clutching her dead baby close. A life ended even before it started. The doctors all bowed their heads to offer silent condolences, thoughts and prayers for the departed infant’s soul.

“I’m so sorry.” Sara cried against Vetra’s chest. One arm holding the body of her daughter and the other gripping tightly onto Vetra.

“Grrrwaw” A small, high pitched grumble sounded from within Ryder’s bosom. Accompanied by tiny claws that pushed against her arms, forcing them open so _she_ could take her first look at the world.

Sara couldn’t believe it.

Crying in happiness, Sara squeezed her mate’s hand as she peppered her new-born daughter with kisses. “You’re alive! You’re alive. You’re alive.” Ryder repeated over and over, whooping in elation as she held her daughter up. “Vetra our daughter’s alive! Oh, you beautiful woman!” Sara

It was then that Artemisia decided to throw up.

=====

“Just in time. We’re… arriving at the hospital…now.” Kallo remarked, his breathing oddly shallow and quick. The moment he touched down, emergency staff rushed forward. Within seconds, she and Vetra were out of the skycar and on their way to the emergency room; followed closely by Jaal with his weapon still raised and searching for threats.

“Don’t…worry about me. I’m…just going to…take a nap here.” Kallo laughed softly, clutching the bullet wound in his side.

“We need to harvest the placenta while it’s still fresh. Would you like to cut the cord?” One of the nurses handed Sara a pair of scissors which she took and used without thinking. “Ok, thank you. Now Vetra needs to get into surgery. You can’t follow her in and you need your own wounds looked at.”

“What! No, I’m going in too. I won’t be separated from her! What if she…” Ryder’s words turned to random babbles as the nurse removed the needle from her neck and plucked the baby from her arms in the same motion.

Ryder woke up in a fit of rage, nearly tearing out the osmotic patch on her arm before she realised her fist was inches from her daughter’s face. The nurse gently passed the infant to her, arms steady even as its mother’s eyes bored holes into her. A dark-skinned doctor entered the room, tapping a few controls on her datapad and activating the privacy glass.

“I apologise for sedating you. I know how you must feel, angry and just about ready to tear down these walls to find your wife. I totally understand. I was in a car crash once and nearly died. My husband was far more injured than me and needed surgery. Naturally, I fought against the doctors. I thought I knew better, I thought I could perform the surgery and save my husband. I didn’t realise that I had a 12-inch drive sprocket poking out my back.” The doctor sat down beside Ryder, lightly tapping Artemisia’s nose. “What I’m trying to say is, don’t worry. Let the doctors do their work, everything will be fine. Vetra’s hooked up to the whole package right now. We are currently synthesising new bone marrow from Artemisia’s placenta to replace the damaged tissue in her bones. The procedure should take about 20 hours. You can see her once it’s completed.” The Indian doctor smiled as Sara visibly relaxed, her shoulders becoming less tense.

“Now then, I have some news for you. The good news is that Vetra gave birth to a healthy baby girl. Her genetic makeup is like nothing I’ve ever seen before. She truly is one of a kind.” Ryder caught sight of the doctor’s name tag; Jem. _Pretty name._ “The bad news is that one of your squadmates, Kallo Jath got injured in the escape. He lost a lot of blood and almost didn’t make it but should make a full recovery. His daughter is with him now.” The doctor dipped her head slightly.

“I advise against visiting Kallo so soon. You were also injured. You have three bruised ribs and one cracked rib. You also have some slight burns and abrasions on your arms and feet. There is a large flesh wound on your left arm from a plasma impact. I suggest you heal up a bit before moving around. We will move Vetra in with you once she’s out of surgery of course.”

Against her chest, Artemisia started to coo, her little hands grasping onto the cloth of her hospital gown. “I think she’s hungry, you should feed her. The first nursing is a vital step in building the bond between mother and child.”

Sara nodded, slipping her gown off one shoulder to bare a breast whose nipple Artemisia instinctively latched on to. A soft smile glowed on Ryder as maternal happiness filled her while her daughter suckled from her.

Artemisia drank in large gulps, loud smacking sounds following each mouthful as she tried to suck down as much creamy nutrition as she could.

“Wow, she’s a fighter if I’ve ever seen one. She wants to live. Your little amazon warrior.” Jem commented, amazed at how the little bundle of blankets in Ryder’s arms had already completely drained one breast and had moved to the second.

“No. She’s my milk monster.” Sara laughed, looking down into her daughter’s wide, beautifully coloured eyes. One a pretty cerulean blue and the other a brilliant emerald green coloured gold flecks; just as Vetra had seen in her dream.

“Amazing. Turian babies usually don’t open their eyes until about a week after birth. It looks like she does take some traits from you.” Jem pulled back some of the blankets, so Ryder could get a better look at her daughter, not covered in blood and other gunk. “As you can tell, her Turian heritage is slightly more dominant than her human one. Her mandibles are much smaller and placed higher on her cheekbones. Her hair follicles produce extremely thin feathers and due to the interaction between Turian-Human pigmentation, we suspect she will be a redhead. Her skin is much tougher than the average human’s but still retains the usual pinkish hue as it is still of average human thickness.”

Sara brushed a thumb along one tiny cheek, feeling the bone beneath that would grow into a mini mandible. Artemisia giggled, grasping onto Sara’s thumb. Her entire hand was the size of her thumb. _We made this. This little baby girl. Our daughter. We made this._ Sara’s smile never left her face as she got a good look at her daughter for the first time. With a body the size of a tissue box and a Sunkist orange for a head, Sara marvelled that the tiny thing in her arms was her own living, breathing daughter. She began to examine the features that made up her baby.

Artemisia’s torso was markedly different from a normal Turian’s for she had a much smaller, slimmer cowl which made her side profile look more like a human albeit with a slight protrusion on her upper back. The soft cartilage that would eventually harden into her cowl formed a small, raised ridge on her collarbones. She had wider shoulders, more obvious musculature and to top it all off, sported a pair of nipples. _Great, now I’ll have to explain why a Turian’s suddenly growing breasts._ Her hips were wider than a normal Turian’s, but her waist was the envy of any race. All this ended in two fairly Turian legs, topped by two adorable little jellybean toes.

At this point, Artemisia was almost done with her feeding and was having trouble keeping her eyes open. Her blinks got longer and longer, eventually drooping shut all together. Her lips still tugging on Ryder’s nipple randomly as she dreamt. The sudden burp that rattled her small frame jerked her awake. Surprise crossing her features for the first time before she began to cry. Very, very loudly. Loud enough that the nurse from next door popped her head over to see what the commotion was about.

“Shhhhhh. Shhhh. It’s okay. It was just a burp, you’re fine, see.” Ryder wiped away some of the spilled milk from Artemisia’s mouth that her mighty burp had brought back up. This immediately calmed the little hybrid down who mimicked Ryder’s smile, showing off the dimples she had inherited from her mother.

“You’re a natural. She’s bonded to you already.” Jem smiled.

“This motherhood thing is easy. I expected it to be a lot harder.” Ryder laughed, lifting Artemisia up, high over her head. “Bup.” The fledgling’s bottom lip wavered before she kindly deposited the entire contents of her stomach directly onto Ryder’s face for the second time in an hour.

=====

Ryder spent the next 20 hours waiting for Vetra to be released from surgery absorbing whatever information she could find on the wedding attack. Already the news was buzzing with accusations and theories on who would want to attack the Pathfinder.

“A vicious attack on the Human Pathfinder’s wedding left 7 dead and 33 injured. Who is behind this terrorist act? Stay tuned to find out.” The pretty purple Asari newscaster said as footage from the wedding played in the background. Ryder switched off the TV, instead focusing on the rapid-fire messages coming from her friends and crew.

She breathed a sigh of relief when they all reported that they were fine. Nothing that a few days in the medbay couldn’t fix. What worried her was the report from her brother. The mercs attacking her wedding were just a distraction. The main force had infiltrated the Titan hangar and stolen three of the prototypes. They were vastly inferior to the ones they were using now but his fear was that if the mercs were to somehow reverse engineer the titans, they could build an army of Titans. Even of those titans were not as advanced, the sheer number they could produce could prove disastrous to the war effort.

There was also the matter of the strange man that had shot Vetra. The problem was that no one knew anything about him. He did not appear on any manifests in the Nexus database and even weirder, Scott swore that he saw the man change into someone else.

“How the fuck did so many criminals get through screening? Andromeda is filled with criminal scum.” Sara slammed a fist into the bed in anger, startling Artemisia who began to cry again.

“I’m sorry. I’m sorry. Mommy didn’t mean to get angry. It’s ok. Go back to sleep. Shhhhh.” Sara glared at the wall as she tried to calm the infant in her arms. “SAM, give me whatever you can find on this man. Collaborate with the other SAMs if you have to. I want this son of a bitch’s head on a plate.”

“Affirmative Pathfinder. Initiating scan.” SAM’s voice echoed in her head as he devoted the bulk of his processing power to tracking down the strange man.

When Vetra was finally carted into the room, Sara watched her with worried eyes as she was carted into the room, hooked up to a large machine and covered in tubes that crisscrossed over her body. She was unclothed except for a small cloth that covered her modesty and the blanket that a nurse brought in later to stabilize her body temperature. Sara had her bed moved closer to Vetra’s, so she could hold her hand, waiting patiently for her wife to wake up. Uncovering Vetra’s torso, her eyes roved over exposed skin, looking through the transparent bandages at the thin white lines that followed each and every bone. She knew that the scars would eventually fade. Turians had more evolved healing as compared to Human’s after all. Today had been a wakeup call for Ryder, she had yet again almost lost Vetra and had very nearly lost her daughter as well. She wouldn’t take that risk anymore. As soon as she was healed, she was sending her family somewhere far away, somewhere safe and away from the war. She was not going to risk it anymore. Who knows when her luck would run out? The next time could be it. She could lose Vetra forever. She could lose Artemisia. She squeezed Vetra’s hand tightly as Artemisia nestled into her chest, purring contently.

It was not till almost a day and a half later that Vetra opened her eyes and met her daughter for the first time.

“Just like in my dream.” Vetra murmured caressing her baby with one bandaged hand. Awed at the simple fact that she was touching the physical embodiment of her and Ryder’s love. A living, breathing little baby that was happily sucking her thumb. Tiny mohawk of fiery red hair, disarmingly elegant sharp features, captivating eyes. This little baby would grow up to be quite a looker Vetra laughed to herself. When Elizabeth came of age, she would be irresistible.

“Our baby. Our little baby girl Vetra. Two point one nine five kilogrammes of _us_ packed into this lil’ milk monster.” Ryder excitedly said.

“She has your eyes.” Vetra noted with an upturned mandible, her voice still soft and weak. “And she has your eyes.” Sara kissed her wife slowly, inching her way onto Vetra’s bed. Grunting softly as the movement jarred her injured ribs.

“She smells like you.” Vetra purred, nuzzling the baby in her cowl with gentle, loving caresses. Artemisia instinctively curled herself in alignment with Vetra’s cowl, nestled warmly between her two mothers. Responding to the motherly pheromones Vetra was producing, Artemisia began to purr in time with Vetra and nibbled on her remaining mandible as they bonded in the Turian way.

“She’s amazing. She’s so cute and beautiful. I can’t believe it. I have a daughter and I’m married to you.” Vetra warbled. She had been so close to having it all ripped away from her. The fact that she could still lay together with her wife and child after facing down death another time nearly made her cry again. She was so damn grateful that the spirits had been kind to her and allowed the fates to let her see her daughter and wife. Now all she prayed for was to be able to watch her daughter grow up.

“I love you.” Sara suddenly blurted, grabbing Vetra’s free hand with both her hands, bringing her lips close. “We can’t continue this any longer Vetra. You need to go. Take our daughter and run, somewhere far away where you’ll be safe. I’m needed here for the war effort and I can’t have you or Artemisia caught in the crossfire. I’d never forgive myself if something were to happen to either of you.” Ryder forced her voice to steady even as pain and revulsion at the words she was speaking bubbled up her throat. She could see Vetra’s features slowly hardening. She knew Vetra would get angry, but couldn’t she see? This was the only way to keep her and their daughter safe.

“Why does it always come to this? Something happens and either you or I run away. No. This time we stick together, side by side as crew, partners, wives. Till death do us part.” Vetra bit out the words. Her teeth gnashing, and her pupils narrowed to slits. “But what about…” Ryder was cut off by an irritated growl from Vetra. “We both know we would rather die than let anything happen to Elizabeth. She stays, with us, as a family.”

Ryder quietly acquiesced, cowed by Vetra’s display of protective maternal instincts. She wasn’t going to fight with her wife while she was in such a highly emotional state. Perhaps when everything went back to normal, Vetra would be able to see things from her perspective.

Two days later when Artemisia had grown out most of her first coat of down, the legislation was passed. By unanimous vote, the Initiative fleet would be repurposed into the Andromeda Defence Force (ADF) under section 8 of the new legislature, a fully militarised star fleet meant to defend Milky Way interests from threats like the Kett. The pathfinders were put in charge of an elite scout/strike division known as the Marauder corps.

Sarah was initially hesitant to assume the role of Commander. This was exactly what she had tried to run away from back in the Milky Way, the hierarchy, the stringent rules, the stupid ranks and above all, the inability to do what needed to be done, damn the risk and consequences. The only reason why she had agreed to the title was because of one specific clause in the bill that gave the Marauder corps carte blanche to do whatever it took to ensure the safety of the Initiative and its allies.

But right now, the brunette woman was preoccupied with more important matters; watching her wife feed their daughter for the first time. Artemisia had taken to the breast well, latching on naturally and guzzling milk like there was no tomorrow. The problem now was that she was so used to being fed by her human mother that she was totally lost when it came to her Turian one.

“It’s not that much different Elizabeth, just stick your tongue in and lick.” Vetra huffed at the infant who was still trying to suck on Vetra’s cowl for milk. Ryder noted with slight amusement that she often referred to Artemisia by her Turian name while Vetra did the opposite and called her by her Human name.

Vetra had small valleys on the inside of her cowl that produced a sticky, nutrition rich mucus. Traditionally, fledgelings would feed off this “milk” for about the first month or two of its life. Afterwards, they would move on to small bits of meat partially digested by their parents or processed by mechanical means. However, Artemisia seemed reluctant to taste the mucus after having the much better tasting milk from her human mother.

“Wow. She’s only two days old and you’ve already spoiled her.” Vetra groaned when it became clear that no matter how much coaxing she did, Artemisia wasn’t going to take her Turian milk. “C’mon Artemisia, just a little taste.” Ryder tried a different tact, gently scooping up some mucus with her forefinger and offering it to the fledgling who immediately began sucking on her fingertip. But as the taste settled on her tongue, her features turned stormy and her face began to turn purple. “Baaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!” Artemisia began to cry again, not knowing how to describe the unsavoury taste of her Turian mother’s milk and how she wanted her Human mother’s instead.

Vetra kissed the top of their daughter’s head, placating the infant with coos and soothing purrs. She was content to just lay here awhile with her wife and daughter. Damn everything outside. She went through enough shit already. She deserved to just cuddle with her newborn. And so, cuddle they did. Vetra learned many new things about Elizabeth. How the little fledgling liked to nibble at the edge of her blanket as she slept, how she dreamily blinked one eye after the other in contentment after a feed or how she loved the smell of sand when Drack walked in after a long day on Elaaden. Artemisia’s life was calm and content, consisting of the perpetual cycle of eating, sleeping and eating.

The mothers also naturally went through the three stages of having a newborn. The first, constantly staring at the baby to check if she was still breathing. The second, spamming cute pictures of her while she was sleeping and of course the third; picking her up to sniff her. Gotta get that baby smell fix.

The doctors were naturally curious about Artemisia’s mixed biology and performed countless tests and scans on her. What they found shocked them. The teeny hybrid had a perfect combination of Turian and Human biology. She had two hearts, lungs with extra air sacks, an extremely efficient fusion digestive tract that could potentially allow her to eat just about anything, enhanced musculature and a far more developed brain than any infant her age should have. All the features of a Kett designed super soldier, but that would not be her destiny. Her mothers would not allow it. Artemisia Elizabeth Ryder was a normal girl and would be raised as one. Raised as the daughter of two loving mothers in the grand galaxy of Andromeda. Born out of extraordinary circumstances for an extraordinary reason. She was their next step in Andromeda.

=====

SAM’s search on the mystery man had come back inconclusive. There was no data on the man except for one word: Jaeger. So, Sara put her energy into getting the ADF into fighting shape. In a stroke of luck, the Quarian ark Keelah Si’yah was found, stranded in a large scourge bank. Three months later, it joined the ADF as its first ultracarrier. A massive mobile command centre capable of carrying enough troops to easily capture a planet from the Kett.

The Initiative now had three fully operational fleets with four more under rapid construction. With a standard fleet consisting of one supercarrier flagship, three dreadnoughts, six battleships, twenty frigates and a multitude of smaller assault and support craft, the fleet was well equipped to deal with any enemy. Thanks to the help of the Quarian Admiral Kaer Vas Keelah Si’yah.

The chain of command had been established, soldiers were being trained, ships were being built. The Initiative was ready for war and the Kett would have no idea what hit them. The Tempest had been refitted with enough offensive armaments to rival a battleship at the behest of Commander Sara Ryder. The old crew was back together, with Kallo back in the chair and Liam on engineering duty after the doctors deemed him unfit for combat. With the Kett set to invade any day now, everyone had to do their part for the war effort. Ryder had to sacrifice her time with her wife and daughter to train new pilots and do her part in the Marauder corps. Vetra mostly stayed with Elizabeth on their quarters on the ADF MacAllen, the Marauder corps’ supercarrier. Sara’s new flagship and their new home.

Artemisia had taken well to life aboard a ship and had gotten quite used to the attention and stares she usually got whenever either of her mothers brought her into the public eye. Her existence was now widely known after a nosey reporter had accidentally caught sight of her when rushing Sara for an interview after the wedding attack. The initial response from the public was shock and even a little disgust but most people soon got over it and eventually viewed her as something to be celebrated. She became a baby celebrity virtually overnight with everyone wanting a glimpse of the impossible hybrid. This caused Ryder to get angry and decide to relocate her family to her flagship where she could at least control the amount of attention her family got.

The little hybrid had gotten her legs under her extremely fast and was able to toddle around quite quickly, causing her mothers frequent distress when she would suddenly disappear after they set her down. To counter this, they had installed a higher fence on her crib. When that proved to be inadequate when Artemisia learned how to climb out, they had her fitted with a tracking anklet much to her annoyance. To add to the dark rings and the eyebags under her parent’s eyes, she had recently found out how to replicate certain words and would frequently repeat the same protoword over and over. This week, the word was “butta” after Drack had accidentally burned his hand on a hot skillet and had sent the butter dish crashing to the floor with a reflexive backhand. The almighty crash combined with colourful Krogan cursing had apparently qualified as interesting enough for Artemisia to add “butta” to her limited vocabulary.

“Oh my god I am dead tired.” Sara groaned as she pretty much faceplanted into the large couch that furnished the living room of their commander’s quarters. The Victory was a very large ship after all, spanning six kilometres in length and 800 metres in width. The Initiative had all agreed that the Treaty of Farixen would no longer apply in Andromeda as they were playing a totally different ball game with an enemy that had a far greater military presence than them. As such, the initiative would build as many fleets as required and all would be staffed by a mix of all the milky way races. No one fleet would belong to a single race. The Initiative stood for unity and unity was the only way they would be able to beat the Kett.

Vetra came down the short flight of stairs that separated the living room and their bedroom in a long light orange gossamer dress that showed off her neck and hips. She had taken to wearing more comfortable clothes after giving birth as her body had yet to go back to the right size for her armor. Not that she was allowed to wear it anymore. She had been pulled off active duty because scarring in her bone marrow had restricted what the doctors could replace. As a result, she was mildly anaemic and always had the possibility of passing out under strain. So, she stayed on the ship and provided emotional and tactical support for her wife. She would always have a hot meal ready for Sara when she returned home after a long day and would provide overwatch via drone for her while on missions. Vetra couldn’t deny that she would much rather be with Sara, boots on the ground and killing Kett but she also had a duty as a wife and mother. She needed to take care of their daughter, she needed to give Sara a home to come back to. So, she put up with it, being a housewife wasn’t so bad actually. She still made trades and deals but often worked through an agent with Drack to back her up, so she wasn’t completely useless.

The house itself was a nice touch. 1400 square feet of luxurious 4-bedroom accommodation on a Titan-class supercarrier was something most people only dreamed about. Floor length viewscreens covered the length of the apartment, letting the Ryder family have an unobstructed view of space and all its beauty while not having to be anywhere near the outer layers of the ship. Plush sofas and all the other facilities they needed to entertain guests were all thrown in curtesy of the Initiative’s lavish budget made it look like one of the famous high-class apartments from the Citadel back in the milky way. Honestly, Vetra felt that it was all a little overkill for just the three of them but well, if this was what the Ryder name afforded, she could put up with it. Since they were only using two of the adjoining bedrooms at the moment, they had converted one into a small reading/study room and left the last as a spare where anyone of their friends could bunk if needed.

The kitchen was Vetra’s favourite part of the new house however. It was symmetrical with two counters on either side with an island in the middle. One was coloured a light, baby blue while the other was a deep, cabernet red. Both had matching crockery, cutlery and cooking vessels to ensure no cross contamination so that they could eat together.

Vetra sat down elegantly beside the sprawled out brunette, curling her legs under her as she lovingly played with her hair with an amused expression on her face, listening to her wife rant. “It’s the new suits Scott developed for Pilots. You remember the power problem with the jump jets?” Vetra nodded, though much more power efficient than gen 1 jump jets, they frequently ran out of power due to the frequency at which pilots used them. Thus, the male Ryder twin had been developing a brand new armor system designed specifically for pilots. “Well, he managed to do it. He redirected power from the shields to power the jump jets indefinitely.”

“But isn’t that extremely dangerous? Running around without shields?” Vetra asked, flicking a mandible. Surely Scott couldn’t be _that_ dumb. “He replaced it with some kind of regenerative armor based on remtech. The nanites in the armor don’t offer as much protection as a full set of shields but they regenerate after a couple of seconds, so they increase survivability in the long run. All I know is the health pool on them is too damn small. I mean look at these!” Sara flopped over, struggling out of her armor and pulling up her shirt to show the small round bruises peppering her chest. “These are bruises from stun rounds when they penetrated the armor. I’m going to have a long talk with him about this but sometime later. I’m too tired now. I just want to cuddle with my Turians.”

Vetra pulled the Pathfinder into her lap and carefully took a sleeping Elizabeth out from her cowl, passing the baby to her wife. “She should wake up for a feed soon, so we can warm you up a bit first.” Vetra purred into her wife’s ear seductively. Her fingers flicking and plucking at the pathfinders rapidly hardening nipples as she fondled and groped her boobs. Vetra was proven right as Artemisia soon woke up and immediately latched onto the closest nipple and began sucking. Meanwhile, Vetra was working Sara up to a second orgasm with her fingers. Vetra often made love to Sara in this way, fingering her from behind as she fed their daughter. It was a giant turn on for both women. To Sara, it was quite a taboo that she was having sex while feeding her daughter while for Vetra, it was insanely sexy to be able to give her wife pleasure in such a motherly situation.

They had learned through many an accident that Artemisia didn’t stop sucking until she was stopped. Which often led to her being over fed and in turn led to a repeat performance of her first feeding. Thus, with extreme care as Artemisia had teeth now, she coaxed the little fledgling off her breast.

Exhausted from training as well as the double orgasm, Sara drifted off silently. Vetra chuckled quietly. Like mother like daughter she supposed. Both of them had fallen asleep in the exact same position, one arm on their stomachs, their heads tilted to the left and their mouths wide open.

Scooping the infant into her cowl, Vetra grunted as she lifted the much heavier and infinitely more unwieldly form of her sleeping wife. Carrying both mother and daughter, Vetra slowly advanced to the bedroom thankful that most of her strength had returned. Grunting with effort as she climbed the short flight of stairs, she paused momentarily when Elizabeth squirmed in her cowl the little hybrid deciding that she wanted to switch sleeping positions. Vetra nearly cursed when Sara suddenly twitched in her sleep, almost as if she were copying her daughter’s sleep patterns.

Finally reaching the top of the stairs, Vetra set her sights on the bedroom door, the next milestone in her journey. “Now comes the tricky part.” Vetra now had to maneuverer around the bar and kitchen and unlock the bedroom door all while carrying two dead weights. The bar was easy with her long legs all she had to look out for was not hitting her wife’s head on anything. She breezed through the kitchen with ease. Hitting the door release with an elbow was also a piece of cake. What she didn’t count on was Ryder suddenly going rigid in her arms just as she was about to cross the threshold into their room. “Bang” The impact of the Pathfinder’s head ramming the door frame was enough to rouse Elizabeth from her sleep who curiously peeped her head over Vetra’s cowl to get a look at the source of the loud noise. “Oops.” Vetra bit her lip as she gingerly turned her body to bring Sara into the room safely.

Laying Sara down on the ground, Vetra began the tedious task of undressing the woman. She had gotten better at using the human made clasps and zips, but it still took some fiddling to get a hold of the little metal tab that allowed her to unzip her pants. Pulling the compression pants off the brunette’s shapely behind proved to be more of a struggle as she couldn’t bend forward too much or risk Elizabeth falling out of her cowl.

“Spirits be dammed. Ok, Elizabeth mummy needs to put you down now ok. Can you just sit still for a while, while I get mommy undressed?” Vetra cooed to the baby. Elizabeth giggled her adorable baby laugh that never failed to draw a smile from Vetra and plopped down on her butt, falling over to the side and smiling. Satisfied that her daughter would cooperate for at least a short while, Vetra turned her back and set to work getting the infernal contraption off her wife’s body. Mischievous giggling from behind caused her to look back. Just in time to see Elizabeth rolling across the bed and towards the edge, she let go of the pants and dived to catch her baby, leaving Ryder face down and ass up while screaming a series of very unladylike expletives in every language she knew.

“Fuck me.” Vetra thumped her head against the wall as she slid down it, calming her racing heart after it nearly jumped out of her chest. “Huh, I guess you _have_ corrupted me.” Vetra mused as she stared at the very enticing yet compromising position she had left her mate in.

After securing Elizabeth to the walker they used to restrict her movement around the house, Vetra once again set to work extricating the pathfinder from the ridiculous monstrosities called pants. _Turian ones are so much simpler._ She mused as she finally got them off Sara.

Carrying her into the bathroom, she ran the water and began to gently yet thoroughly wash her mate, cleaning the sweat and grime from her body. She made sure to scrub her armpits and groin thoroughly paying special attention to her folds as she didn’t want her to get any rashes or irritation.

While scrubbing her moist, pink folds, Vetra couldn’t stop herself from dipping in for a quick taste of heavenly ambrosia. She then moved on to her second favourite part of Ryder’s body, her hair. The Turian ran her soapy fingers through the smooth brown locks of Ryder’s hair. Though the woman had since cut it shorter after the wedding, it was still long enough to reach the bottom of her neck. Vetra firmly massaged the shampoo into Sara’s scalp, purring softly when the brunette began to smile in her sleep.

“Kyaa!” Artemisia’s voice sounded through the wooden door of the bathroom causing Vetra to look up and see that her daughter had somehow climbed out of her walker and made her way into her parent’s room. The four-month-old slowly walking across the bedroom carpet to their bathroom.

“Oh, you want a bath too?” Vetra asked, opening her arms for her toddler to barrel herself into.

“Ya!” The toddler cried, raising her arms high over her head, asking to be carried. With one practiced hand, Vetra unbuttoned the clasps of her daughter’s onside and plopped her in the bath. The fledging happily splashed around in the soapy water. Her hair and feathers sticking up all over the place.

“Ok. You stay there, just let me get mommy dressed and in bed.” Vetra kept an eye on her daughter even as she dressed her wife though she knew how confident Elizabeth was in the water. For some reason, the fledgling had taken an almost immediate liking to water and had learnt to float very early on. She also absolutely adored baths and would often ask to join in whenever one of her mothers was talking one. Something Vetra was extremely proud of as few Turian’s dared to enter water above waist height and even fewer dared to swim. Her daughter had accomplished in her short few months of life what had taken her years and the presence of her mate to overcome.

Washing the shampoo out of Ryder’s hair took a little longer than Vetra expected, having to make sure every strand was clean and no longer soapy. Now all she needed to do was dry the uncooperative Ragdoll that was her sleeping wife but every time Vetra dried a limb and flopped it over the side of the bathtub and moved on to the next, the previously dried limb would fall back into the water and get wet again.

Giving up, she decided to wake her mate up just enough to dry herself so that she could focus on Elizabeth and get her bathed.

“ _Sarea_ , wake up my love. I can’t dry you if you’re sleeping. I need you to wake up for a bit and dry yourself while I bathe Elizabeth.” Vetra shook the commander awake.

“Mn okay.” Ryder yawned, slowly getting out of the bath and drying herself with bleary eyes before jumping like a salmon into the bed and rolling herself into the sheets like a human burrito.

“Never change my love.” Vetra chuckled to herself as she began to bathe Elizabeth. The youngling already playing with the bubbly soap she knew came out of the shiny green bottle that her parents tried in vain to keep out of her hands. The toddler had made herself a crown of bubbles and was proudly standing in the tub, waiting for her mother’s approval. “My little princess.” Vetra laughed as she playfully splashed water at her daughter.

“M’yes…Verawarm…” Sara mumbled when Vetra crawled into bed at last and hugged her from behind, spooning her while Artemisia burrowed into her hair. “My Turians…” she mumbled and soon fell asleep again, comfortably held by the two lights in her life, surrounded by warmth and love.


	15. Valentines with a 4 month old

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I figured we needed a cooldown chapter before we hit the next one where pretty much everything goes to shit. So...here we are. A tiny little chapter where the girls get a nice evening and uncle Drack gets to spend some time with his cute lil' niece.

** ADF James MacAllen-Ryder family quarters **

“12 AM, baby’s still asleep.” Vetra whispered, focusing the camera on the sprawled-out infant. “I have last feed duty before she wakes up again at four.”

“12:01 AM, Baby’s still asleep.” The new parent whispered in awe as she stared at the little ball of fluff that had come from her body, still in disbelief even after four months.

“12:03 AM, Baby’s still asleep.” Vetra leaned closer, letting her visor cam get a better recording of Elizabeth’s sleeping features.

“12:04 AM, Baby moved, may wake up. Continuing to monitor.”

“Whherdoinn?” Sara mumbled, turning her head to squint past the gloomy darkness to see her wife sitting cross legged and hunched over, peering intently at the small lump of feathers slowly rippling on the bed.

“Watching her breathe. She’s alive and breathing.” Vetra simply stated the most amazing and monumental thing.

Ryder’s heart melted the next moment when Artemisia let out the cutest, widest yawn, smacking her lips and squirming her little limbs. Her beautiful eyes opening and sparkling like interstellar dust in the murky darkness. She then looked up to see the same look of amazement and unrestrained awwing reflected in Vetra’s face. She bit her lip to stop herself from squealing when Vetra bent down to nuzzle the fledgling tenderly. Her heart nearly burst from love and cuteness when both Turian’s started humming to one another. She soon drifted off to sleep again once Vetra left the bed.

Pulling a bottle of Ryder’s milk from the fridge always made Vetra think of the first time they had used the machine. She remembered Ryder’s face of uncomfortable interest while she watched the machine pump away at her breasts and the white nectar within them squirt and flow into the collection bottles. “Now I really, really feel like a goddam cow.” She had grumbled, though she knew that it was ultimately best for both her and Artemisia. The fledgling would have access to milk whenever she needed it and she could have some much-needed rest at night while Vetra took care of the baby.

Sticking the bottle into the warmer, Vetra hummed to herself as her eyes roamed around the house aimlessly, hands cradling her daughter as she waited. Her eyes soon rested back on the fridge door, the silver surface reflecting her gaze back on herself. She smiled. Standing there holding the light of her life, she felt like she had done something with her life for the second time and it was all thanks to a short, cute little brunette.

Still staring at the fridge, her eyes slowly refocused on the embedded touchscreen. It activated and lit up when it sensed her eyes on it, proudly displaying the top 5 extranet searches over the past few days.

Valentine’s Day restaurant  
Valentine’s Day dinner for two recipe  
Valentine’s Day pie recipr  
What to buy for Valentine’s Day  
How to tell your crush you like her for Valentine’s Day

Vetra flicked an interested mandible at the repeated mentions about this “Valentine’s Day” glancing over to the warmer for a moment, she saw she still had a couple minutes, so she quickly tapped in a search for Valentine’s Day.

 _Valentine's Day, also called Saint Valentine's Day or the Feast of Saint Valentine is celebrated annually on February 14. Originating as a_[ _Western_](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Western_Christianity)[ _Christian_](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christianity) [_feast day_](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Feast_day) _honouring one or more early_[ _saints_](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saint) _named_[ _Valentinus_](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saint_Valentine) _, Valentine's Day is recognized as a significant cultural, religious, and commercial celebration of_[ _romance_](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Romance_\(love\)) _in many regions on Earth._

Another quick search opened her eyes to what exactly Valentines Day entailed. Courting or mated human couples would often set aside this day as a special day to celebrate their love for each other. Giving gifts and having special meals together and going on dates together to spend more time with each other. Momentarily distracted by the beeping of the heater, Vetra bent to retrieve the heated milk bottle from the heater. Elizabeth greedily grabbing the bottle from her mothers hand the moment it was within reach. Vetra barely spared a glance at the feeding infant, instead opting to type in another search. She had utmost confidence in her daughter’s ability to feed herself. Elizabeth had after all learned how to grip the bottle not two weeks after she was born.

Vetra’s mind was running at full speed as she thought about this event. According to the extranet, this celebration was quite an important one, up there with the human winter solstice celebrations known as the Christmas period. No doubt her human friends and colleagues would be celebrating it. Only her Sara would be left out as she had fallen in love with a Turian instead of another Human. She was going to change that.

Elizabeth had by now finished her first bottle of milk and was cheerfully gurgling away in Vetra’s arms. With her attention more focused on the tablet in front of her, she tucked Elizabeth into her cowl and texted Suvi, convinced that the female human would have useful information for her on this human ritual. Especially since she also had a female partner.

_12:04 AM R.Vetra: Suvi, what can you tell me about Valentine’s Day? I’m planning on celebrating it with Ryder but I don’t know how to go about it._

_12:04 AM R.Vetra: Suvi? Its important. Help please._

_12:04 AM R.Vetra: SUVI! URGENT HELP NEEDED PLEASE!_

_12:05 AM R.Vetra: I’m calling you._

Vetra let her omni-tool ring while she busied herself with cleaning and burping Elizabeth. Preparing to tuck her baby in for the night. Scratching Elizabeth’s cute little nose, smiling and purring at her beautiful little girl as her blinks slowly got longer and longer before she fell asleep entirely.

“Suvi, I need your help.” Vetra immediately started when Suvi finally picked up the call.

“Uh, hi! Yes, Vetra. W-what can I h-hah help you with?” Suvi said, sounding very out of breath.

“Is now a good time to talk? Should I call back later?” Vetra glanced at the clock.

“Y-yeah! Everything is fine. Talk! I can talk now. Wha-hnn is it you need?”

“You sure you’re alright? You sound very out of breath.” Vetra briefly considered cutting the call and trying Cora instead. Even though she wasn’t as close to the commando.

“Yeah! I’m fine! Just um, exercising…exercising in the-uh gym?”

 _Suvi. Exercising. In the gym. At past midnight._ Something was really wrong here.

“Suvi tell your girlfriend to stop eating you out. I really need your help here. This is serious, please.” Vetra sighed. “Shit, how did you know? Was I stuttering too much? O-or was it-” Vetra cut the scientist off before she could go any further. “Valentine’s Day. What is it and how do I do it?”

“Valentine’s Day is uhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh isn’t something… actually that special. It’s just a day that people set aside to do something special for their partner to show that they love and care for them deeply. Like what Elsie did for me. She brought me out to this fancy restaurant that just opened on Meridian. ‘s really good. We should go sometime. And we had a date and it was really good and a-ah that’s really good and what I’m trying to say is just go for it, do something that Ryder loves and you’ll do great! Good luck, kay bye!” Suvi cut the line before Vetra could get another word in edgewise. Vetra stopped herself from making a repeat call since they were clearly _busy_.

“Do something that she would love?” Vetra muttered aloud, leaning back onto the kitchen counter again.

=====

** 13th Feb. One day before Valentine’s Day. **

Vetra was stressed. She was nearly as stressed as the day she got married. And it wasn’t because of Valentine’s day…well it was but it wasn’t because she didn’t know what to do. She knew exactly what to do. She had it all planned out. Schedule, travel routes, what dishes to order, everything. She did pride herself on being organised after all.

Her only worry was finding a safe place for her baby. She knew that the underworld had their eyes trained on her daughter, watching her from the shadows, just waiting for the right time to strike. It unsettled her to no bounds. She really wanted to do this thing, celebrate her love for Ryder but she would never sacrifice her daughter for it. She was too important. She had no worries about either her or Ryder being attacked. She knew they could handle it but a poor defenceless baby, who could protect her?

Sara was out training with her M-COR pilots on the holodeck, their brand new onboard arena. The brunette had been quite unhappy lately as her high score had been beaten. Trashed really, by four other pilots so her competitive nature demanded that she regain her placement atop the leader board in the upcoming scored even on the 14th.

Scott and Cora were busy with their own things and couldn’t spare the time to babysit for her sadly.

Suvi and Elsie were… doing whatever it was a young lesbian couple usually got up to, ignoring her texts and calls. Probably to avoid another situation like the night before.

Lexi was busy writing a thesis on Elizabeth’s fascinating biology and had probably passed out, having not returned any of Vetra’s attempts to contact her.

Jaal had dragged Liam with him to _integrate_ him with the locals which probably meant shagging as many Angaran women as he humanly could.

Kallo had kindly offered to babysit but had to retract his offer at the last minute because one of his students had suffered a malfunction and crashed a dropship.

That only left Drack as the potential guardian. Vetra was not very comfortable with that idea. Not because she was racist and didn’t like Krogans or because she didn’t trust him as a person. It was simply because he was just so _big._ His large hands could easily crush and injure Elizabeth with the smallest of motions. But as she thought about it more, there was no one she would trust to ensure the safety of her daughter more than Drack. She knew how the Krogan valued children and was sure that Drack would protect Elizabeth as his own. He had also raised a child before so that checked off another box in her mind. She just needed someone else to handle the more delicate things like changing diapers and feeding.

Her datapad suddenly lit up with a message from the admin VI telling her that Commander Avitus was onboard and looking for Sara Ryder.

_Perfect. Now to convince him to skip planning and babysit instead._

** 14th February Valentine’s Day **

“Turian.” Drack huffed a greeting, staring down at Avitus as they stood outside the door to the Ryder’s quarters waiting for their charge.

“Krogan.” Avitus acknowledged the towering alien with a short flick of his mandible.

“So Vetra roped you into this too huh? Babysitting her little Turian shit, not how I wanted to spend my evening.” Drack growled, his nose twitching and his huge lips curling into a smirk when Avitus visibly bristled. “If you find it too much of a bother Krogan, you can leave. It will be much safer for the fledgling anyway if you are not around.”

“Too bad guys, you’re stuck together. And Drack, you know you love your niece too much to call her a _little shit_.” Vetra appeared, wearing a _very_ strappy black dress with light makeup and eyeliner. Her dress would definitely draw the envy of others. Not that she wasn’t already a head turner to begin with. She stood there holding a smiling Elizabeth lion king style.

“Unk Dak! Unk Av!” Elizabeth shrieked, clapping her little hands.

“Huh, weird to see you all dressed up V. Is that…makeup?” Drack shoved his face closer, peering at Vetra’s darkened eyes and the sparkling glitter dusting on her mandibles. “Um I just thought Ryder would like it,” She gestured to herself “me dressing more like a Human.” Drack harrumphed and grabbed the infant out of her hands.

“Ah who’s uncle Drack’s favourite little Turian? You are. Yeschuare.” Drack cooed, his massive paw dwarfing the tiny fledgling. The 900-pound (408 KG) Krogan coughed and straightened himself looking just like a child that had been caught with his hand in the cookie jar. “Uhm, just got, something stuck in my throat ‘sall.” He tried to play it cool and regain at least some of his tough, gruff Krogan credit.

Vetra just cocked a hip with an all-knowing smirk on her face.

“Okay I need to set some ground rules; no sugar or sweet stuff after six if you want her to sleep by nine. I’ve given you seven bottles of milk just in case.” Vetra passed the green insulated bag to Avitus “Heat up the bottles in hot water for two minutes or stick it in the microwave for thirty seconds. And make sure she doesn’t chew the teat! I’ll pick her up at eight tomorrow. I trust you two to keep my daughter happy and return her with not a scratch on her plates. Do you understand?”

Avitus answered with a crisp salute and a loud “Yes ma’am” while Drack opted for a simple “yeah.” too occupied with the fledgling clinging to his finger.

“Simple job. Take care of a kid for a night how hard could that be?” Drack laughed, thinking back to all those years back when he raised Kesh.

“Don’t…say that. I’ve had terrible experiences whenever someone says that phrase.” Avitus winced.

“Aww, is mwy iddy bitty Turian afrwaid of a lil’ babby?” Drack snickered. Oh, how easily he could rile this Turian up. He was going to enjoy this evening.

=====

“Hmm, she said she’d be here about six thirty.” Sara thought aloud, absentmindedly waving goodbye to the last few straggling pilots leaving the Holodeck bruised and limping. She had been really hard on the other pilots today, topping nearly every match and yet she was still unsatisfied. Those four pieces of shit that had beaten her hadn’t shown up today. So, her position on top of the leader board meant sweet fuck all to her because she hadn’t faced them head on. She had fought so hard that one pilot even teased her that she was taking out her sexual frustration on the battlefield because Vetra wasn’t giving her enough. A slight that she responded to with an unerring shot to the head of the offending pilot.

“Y’know, when they said you’d spend your entire day here, I almost didn’t believe them. I thought you’d spend your Valentine’s Day getting your brains screwed out. Now I see they weren’t wrong. They just got the timing wrong.” Scott squatted next to his sister, slowly leaning back so that he fell onto his bottom with a soft thud. “OH, FUCK ME! TODAY IS VALENTINE’S DAY?!” Sara jumped to her feet. “Fuck! I completely forgot! Shit, do I look okay? Fuck, fuck, fuck!” Sara turned to her brother.

“Well, I mean, nothing screams more Sara.E Ryder than an old, worn grey tank top and yoga pants.” Scott scratched his head, grimacing as he tried to stretch and crack his back. “Damn, my back is killing me. D’yknow how hard it is to service one of them Turian Titan’s? Legionaries I think they’re called. Not meant for individual fighting like ours though. They function best when put sided by side with their comrades. That phalanx formation is just…damn.” He scrunched up his nose as he unzipped his backpack. “Funny how the culture of a species can be captured in the designs of their Titan’s.”

Sara just stared at him with her mouth open and her left eyebrow pulsing like a constipated caterpillar. “Can you be… serious?” The male Ryder had already unwrapped a replicated hamburger without even looking at it and was digging into it, sauce and cheese dribbling down his chin as he chewed on the oily, fatty meat. “I mmph.” He took a moment to swallow a bit before continuing. “You’ll be fine. Knowing Vetra, she’s probably got the whole thing planned out.” He took another bite, cramming his mouth full. “I mean, I just totally forgot about it. I was too busy thinking about beating those pricks. Shit, I didn’t even get her anything.” Sara paced back and forth, arms crossed tightly against her chest.

“Hey, don’t sweat it.” Scott lightly kicked his sister’s shin. “She probably also found out about this ‘Human ritual’ a couple days ago. She’s probably also stressing about how to correctly pull it off for you. In fact…” Scott nodded up to a larger than normal, colourful shuttle entering the holodeck’s docking bay. “Y’know whenever I see that I’m just like holy shit. I’m on a big ass ship with giant robots, fighting for the initiative’s army and I’m like damn. We’re actually in Andromeda and we’re living. We’re thriving and we’re fighting for our stake in the galaxy.”

“Meanwhile I’m just wondering why the hell we need shuttle docks on every section of the ship.” Sara squinted, trying to see if the pilot of the shuttle was indeed her wife. And then out stepped a goddess made flesh in one of the most breath-taking dresses she had ever seen. Her beauty only accented by the eyeliner and makeup she wore. It all made for a picture that made Sara breathless and weak in the knees.

Scott let out an enthusiastic wolf whistle. “Holy shit!”

Sara just stood there with her jaw on the floor while Vetra sauntered over. It seemed she was turning on the charm to overdrive when her hand glided around Sara’s waist and smoothly dipped her for a very passionate kiss. “…And that is how you kiss a girl.” Scott laughed at the way Sara’s mouth flapped open and closed, as if she were a fish out of water. “I…um Hi.” Sara sputtered, her cheeks bright red as she realised that whatever personnel on the deck had just witnessed their over the top PDA. Normally, she would be totally fine with it, but she was hardly dressed for the occasion.

“My _Sarea._ Shall we go?” Vetra’s unique Turian-toned amalgamation of Sara and Eva sent shivers down her spine. Ushered away with a firm hand on her backside, Sara glanced back at her brother who waved her off with a nod and a wink.

Catching her breath after being swept off her feet by such a stunning woman, Sara shook the redness from her cheeks while heat pooled between her legs. “I um…wow. Holy shit.”

“Was that too much? I’m sorry, I’m not sure how to do this Valentine’s Day thing.” Vetra bit her lip, feet shifting nervously and mandible fluttering. Causing the the powerful, sexy atmosphere she had just built to vanish in a puff of smoke, leaving behind the awkward, sweet adorkable side of the woman she had fallen so head over heels in love with.

“No. It was just right.” Sara blushed, taking Vetra into her arms and kissing her deeply.

=====

“Gib! Gib Arri!” Artemisia lunged for the crunchy snack in Drack’s other hand.

“This? No little one. You cannot have this. It’s bone. Yer stomach can’t handle it yet.” Drack continued crunching the fried Pyjak femur.  Stopping when a fragment got caught between his teeth. He dug it out with his fingers and was about to pop it back in his mouth when he was hit with the full blast of Artemisia’s secret weapon. “Pwease?” she whimperd. Puppy dog eyes, quivering mandibles and pitiful the pitiful cries from the fledgling’s mouth made even the grizzled warrior stop dead in his tracks, powerless against Artemisia’s charms.

“Ahh, fine have this little piece but no more eh! I don’t wantcha mother screaming at me later.”

Artemisia, satisfied with her diplomatic skills, happily nibbled on her fist sized calcium rich snack.

Meanwhile, Avitus was struggling with figuring out how to replace the infant’s onesie. Diapers had been easy enough, most species also used the tried and tested method. The human made buttons on the other hand… Let’s just say getting a Krogan through a pinhole was a much easier task. After nearly 20 minutes of fumbling, Avitus gave up and threw the infuriating piece of clothing down the de-atomiser. He had no idea how Vetra managed to do it so easily. “Oh, I don’t know what happened to it. It must have gotten lost somewhere.” He muttered to himself.

“Heh heh heh, stupid Turian.”

“Don’t even start Krogan.”

=====

“Have I told you how beautiful you look whenever you come out the shower?”

“Psh! Only about every time,” Sara towelled her hair. “But it’s always a welcome comment.” Heat rose in her cheeks as she glanced back and saw Vetra’s eyes roam her body. Eyes of a predator that could see much more than she could. It never failed to send a bolt of arousal straight to her core at the same time as a shudder would pass through her body.

“And it always makes me want to lick every drop of water off your skin.” Vetra purred, rising off the bed, taking a step towards her mouth-watering mate.

“And that voice almost makes me want to let you.” Sara closed the distance between them, walking two fingers up Vetra’s cowl to pull her down for a kiss. “But we can’t, not yet. We’d miss our _reservations_.” Vetra broke away, dragging the last word, her voice husky from kissing.

“Please, take me. It’s been too long.” Sara rasped, her sex slick against Vetra’s thigh.

“Later.” Vetra promised. Though internally, she was anxious to sink her teeth into the soft flesh of her mate and lay claim to her body.

“No please, I need you right now.”

Vetra found herself powerless against the overpowering scent pouring out from her mate. As was often the case whenever Sara began expressing, her instincts broke free from the constraints of her rational brain like a runaway train. Flipping them over, she growled and sunk her teeth into her mate’s offered neck. Her own slick sex bounced against Ryder’s as she rutted against her, desperate to fill and be filled. “ _Sareeaaaa”_ Vetra moaned, as the other woman skilfully entered her with her fingers, filling the aching emptiness within her pussy. “Take me Vetra. Let me make you feel good.” Sara whispered into her ear, ratcheting her arousal up to eleven and nearly making her lose control right then and there.

Vetra obliged, grabbing one plump tit with her hand and slurping up the milk that squirted from the taut pink nipple. Vetra howled with pleasure when Sara sucked on the hollow of her throat, hand still working fervently between her legs.

Frantic, hot and heavy. This wasn’t love making. This was sex. Pure lust driven, raw physical fucking. Exactly what they needed after such a long dry spell. It wasn’t long before Vetra reached the edge of her endurance.

“Sarea, I’m…close.” Vetra grunted, slamming her hips down onto Evangeline’s hand, trying to get the human’s fingers as deep as possible.

“Cum for me my love. Let me taste you. It’s been too long.” Sara wiggled herself lower, so she could please her wife with her tongue. Rich, thick nectar coated her lips. Musky, coppery and sweet with the slightest hint of that baby powder smell that reminded her immediately of Artemisia. Her baby…no, _their_ baby. The pussy that belonged to her wife, the woman that had birthed her child. Sara doubled her efforts with a pleased hum, eager to repay Vetra for every bit of suffering she had to go through to bring their daughter into the world. Again. That’s the excuse she would tell herself but really, she just enjoyed having sex with her wife. Any kind of sex.

“Gahvenytursmhnnnnn!” Vetra’s well sexed brain failed to find the right words to describe the orgasm that sent her into a shaking, twitching fit. Toes curling, and voice stuck in a halfway purring whimper as her eyes rolled up.

Vetra fell over, her limbs too weak to support her any longer. She collapsed onto the soft bed, panting heavily and trying to catch her breath and regain enough brain power to speak.

“Mmmlh!” Her protest faded with a muffled scream as Ryder began to ride her. Slowly, sensually. Her big beautiful tits mesmerising as she ground against her in a slow, undulating rhythm. Every curve divine in the soft cabin light.

“You’re so hot. Feels like you’re burning down there.” Sara remarked, bringing her slick fingers up to her mouth and licking each digit clean, never breaking eye contact because she knew how much it turned Vetra on. “I missed your taste.” She kissed her Turian, feeling her wife’s talons digging into her perfect, tone ass. “I missed touching you; mating with you.” Vetra touched her forehead to Sara’s lacing her fingers in her hair as they climbed the peak of their pleasure together once more.

It felt great to be desired. To be wanted and viewed as still being sexy despite having been pregnant and giving birth. Vetra loved her wife, her mate. It was cheesy, but she was her world. She gave her every reason to live and love.

=====

 _“Say it with me now. Swiper no swiping!”_ The overly cheerful animated girl jumped and waved on the screen. Avitus was a hairs breath away from clawing out his own eyeballs after being forced to watch the devilishly annoying kid’s show for the last hour, convinced by Drack that it was the best form of engagement for a youngling. Avitus begged to differ. Drack had long passed out on the couch with Artemisia in the crook of his collar. The fledgling had long stopped paying attention to the screen and had instead turned to her uncle’s far more interesting nose and mouth.

Avitus gritted his teeth. He couldn’t turn off the TV because Drack had taken the remote and hidden it under his fat Krogan behind. Avitus couldn’t lift the Krogan without waking him and he was surely not going to lose his bet against the Krogan that he could withstand more than two hours of the visual and audio torture.

He resorted to trying his hand at hacking the television with his very limited coding skills. Using his SAM for such a trivial thing would be in breach of protocol and a waste of such power. The hierarchy would surely disapprove if they found out. But then they wouldn’t find out if he was quick and quiet about it won’t they?

He debated this inside his head as he watched the fledgling slowly climb her way up Drack’s face. Her tiny toes scrabbling for purchase on his huge lip like she was climbing a Krogan jungle gym. Her downy feathers tickled the large Krogan’s nose as she climbed by. Drack’s nostrils flared, he snorted. Drawing in deep rushes of air like bellows in a forge, preparing to expel the irritating itch.

The next moment, a white fluff ball was shot across the room, luckily landing in an empty cardboard box that had until about 9 am that day contained Drack's favourite snack food.

“Wheeeeeeeeee!” Artemisia giggled and clapped her hands. “Again! Again!” Totally oblivious to the green slime matting her feathers.

“I am not cleaning that up.” Avitus gave the disgusting Krogan the stink eye.

“Ehhhhh, fine.” Drack lumbered over to his where his niece was happily bouncing up and down on her feet, oblivious to the filth that covered her.

=====

“Y’know, I never asked, where _did_ you get this shuttle? I’ve never seen anything like it.”

“Rental. Luxury skiff. Deluxe package, complete with onboard shower and sleeping quarters. A tip from our king of scumbags Reyes Vidal.” Vetra said without losing focus on piloting the shuttle. “And before you ask, he still hasn’t been able to turn up any information on who was responsible for the attack.”

Ryder sighed, cupping her head in her hands. “Four months. Four fucking months and we’re no closer to finding this asshole! Even _with_ the most advanced AI and the entire criminal underworld at our backs. Who the fuck _IS_ he?” She slammed the console in anger. “I don’t know _Sarea_ but let’s not think about it tonight. Let us take this night for ourselves. Cheer up, we are almost there, the finest restaurant this side of the system. And I must say, you look absolutely beautiful in that dress.” The shiny, sequin dress Vetra had picked for her really hugged every curve and highlighted the fit, toned body of her mate. Flattering windows showed off just the right amount of skin and a deep scoop on the back revealed just the top of the back dimples that Vetra so loved.

Ryder got up on the dashboard, peering out at the endless expanse of space. Without her hud to tell her where she was, all space looked the same. “Where are we?” She turned to her Turian. “I can’t tell you. That would ruin the surprise wouldn’t it?” Vetra smirked, lovingly patting her cheek. “Arrgh! SAM where are we?” Sara hated being kept in the dark especially by her wife of all people.

_“I cannot tell you commander. Vetra has given me specific instructions to withhold that information from you.”_

Sara gasped, “You turned my AI against me?” She stared at Vetra in shock. “Well to be fair, he chose to do so himself. He saw my logic that you needed ‘an emotional recharge to retain peak performance in the field’ in fact, he was the one that helped me with the logistics of getting everything set up.”

_“You’re welcome.”_

“Ughh. Fine, I’ll be patient. Are we there yet?” Sara sat back down, frown on her face. She didn’t know how to react at that point, a mixture of sadness, anger, shock and happiness churned within her.

=====

Not long after they were docking at the Space station for Culinary Wonders in Andromeda (SCWA or the crow’s nest due to its shape.) a mobile premium dining locale offering fine food from two galaxies apart. The space station was currently in orbit around a frozen Eezo cloud and the slow rotation gave its diners an ever-changing view of the beautiful starburst of colours.

“Do you have a reservation Madame?” The maître d' clasped his hands together respectfully.

“Yes, I do, two actually. Uhm, under the name Vetra Ryder? I think we missed the first one, we… got a little distracted.” Vetra spared a glance back at her mate who was discreetly trying to cover up the row of hickeys and bite marks trailing down her neck.

“Hold one moment Madame while I check the system.” The elegant, perfectly groomed gentleman fluidly keyed her name into the system. “Ah yes Madame, I see that you have missed your first reservation. Unfortunately, the table you requested is no longer available. We have but one table left, this being the Valentine’s Day celebration period. I apologise on behalf of the SCWA.” He dipped into an apologetic bow, not missing a beat even as his attentive eyes flashed to the marks on Ryder’s neck.

“N-no worries. Just…” Vetra vaguely gestured towards the restaurant. Too flustered to concentrate on anything else but the marks upon her mate’s neck which made her all too aware of her pounding heart and the arousal that was steadily pouring out of her scent glands. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw a male Turian flare his nostrils and twitch his head in her direction before he shook his head and refocused on the female Turian in front of him.

“Very well Madame, if you would follow me.” The effortlessly presentable maître d’ glided away, leading them to a table on the second rotating ring of the dining platform. A middle ground between the part that was securely on the station’s foundations and the outer ring that hung off into space, allowing guests a complete spherical view of space through the transparent walls and floors.

“Here are the menus. I will leave you to browse Madams. Should you need any assistance or when you are ready to order, do not hesitate to call for any of our staff.” He passed them two datapads.

“Thanks, we’ll… do that.” Ryder blushed. She wasn’t used to eating in such high-class restaurants. Her easily recognisable face and galaxy wide fame for having such an unconventional relationship made her stick out like a sore thumb already. Add to the fact that she felt she felt way out of her league added to her discomfort. She had been brought up on replicated and ready to eat meals. Sometimes even just heated up leftovers. Rarely ever did their family have time to sit down together for a meal. Even rarer did they go out to eat at a restaurant. Both her parents were too busy.

She opened the menu and was immediately overwhelmed by the number of food choices. They really weren’t kidding. SCWA really did have just about every dish ever imagined. “I…really have no idea where to even start. I mean everything looks so good but I can’t possibly eat all of it. And the prices! Wow! Vetra, I feel really bad. It’s so expensive!”

“Don’t worry _Sarea._ It’s fine really. It’s a small price to pay to show how much you mean to me. Not like you don’t already know it but… really, I don’t mind. I love you.”

“And I love you too but…”

“Just!... order something. You can pay me back later. _In other ways_ if you wish. We’ll call it even.”

“Okay… but seriously. I have no idea what to order.”

“Neither do I.” Vetra laughed. She waved a waiter over. “I’m going to try something I saw on the extranet once.”

“Yes madame, can I take your order?”

“Yes, surprise us.” Vetra said. Watching the young man’s expression change from friendly to slight shock before he schooled his features back to a respectful expression. “I will tell the chef. I assure you the SCWA will not disappoint.”

 

=====

"Man I'm hungry." Drack complained. Watching Artemisia chug down her milk like a frat boy at a party didn't help either. He had already eaten his way through his emergency snack stockpile so he'd probably need to send Avitus out to buy something for them later. He didn't trust the Turian enough to leave him alone with his niece. Just then, the doorbell started ringing. "Meh, probably another lost delivery guy. I didn't order anything." Drack muttered to himself. Since he had already parked his ass on his couch and was comfortable with the fledgling in his lap, he called out to the Turian.

“Y’gonna answer that? 'tis gettin annoying.” Drack nodded to the rhythmic ding-dongs of the doorbell. 

“Pizza delivery!” A dark-skinned human held out a square cardboard box. “But we didn’t order any piet-zaz” Avitus struggled with the human word but found himself reaching for the box anyway, unable to resist the tantalising smells radiating from it.

“You’re right. You didn’t. Hands up!” Avitus found himself looking down the barrel of a very mean looking pistol.

“Uhh, Drack? We have a situation here.” Avitus called out, slowly backing away from the gunman, keeping his pizza box high in the air. He too had a pistol, but he would never get to it in time before the pizza man pulled his trigger.

“No sudden movements. Everybody take it nice and easy and everybody gets to walk away from this.” The gunman waved his gun at Drack, “You, Krogan, gimmie the kid.” The man extended his other hand.

“And if I say no?” Drack grinned at the man.

“Then I shoot both of you and take the kid.” Drack was unfazed, still gently rocking the baby hybrid in one arm. Artemisia stared at the strange man with saucer wide eyes, clinging to her uncles arm, unsure what was going on. All she knew was that she could smell the danger coming off him and could instinctively tell that he was a bad man. “Well, I foresee a problem with that plan. You see I-” Drack looked down at the slowly spreading patch of blood on his shirt. “As I was saying,” Drack’s free hand shot out, grabbing the man by his neck and lifting him off the floor, dislodging his pistol. “You forgot, I’m Krogan.” He finished, head butting the man.

=====

“Hey, don’t fall asleep on me yet. We’re almost there.” Vetra poked the brunette that had curled up on her seat like a kitten, feet tucked under her legs. “Mn’tiiired. Food coma…” Sara mumbled, smushing her face deeper into the seat.

Vetra too felt the tendrils of sleep drag against her mind but she shook it away and forced herself to focus on flying.

“We’re here _Sarea._ Open your eyes.” Vetra leaned over, whispering into her wife’s ear.

The human yawned and rubbed her eyes, looking out the window at the lush, green landscape. “Wh…eare we?” She yawned.

“Kadara. Where it all began. Where _we_ began.” Vetra took her wife’s hand in hers. “Thank you for giving me the chance to get to know you better. And for becoming my mate. I… don’t know what I’d do without you.”

“It’s changed so much.” Ryder looked out at the green forests where previously were only sulphur springs. “We’ve changed so much” Sara smiled up at the taller woman with shining eyes. “This is the spot I fell in love with you. This is the spot where I will pledge my heart to you from this day forward, and every Valentine’s Day after.” Vetra proclaimed, touching her forehead to Sara’s as they held each other intimately in the cool Kadaran evening. Surrounded by the soothing sound of crickets.

“Y’don’t, you don’t have to do that you know? All this… tonight… was just amazing. You’re amazing. But you really don’t have to. I’m fine just spending a nice evening at home with my girls.” Ryder kissed the underside of Vetra’s neck, grazing the sensitive flesh with her teeth. “I love you. So, so much.” She shifted comfortably against her bony wife, leaning her head against her chest, their hands entwined over her stomach as they watched the stars twinkle and dance in the sky.

“But I love you more.” Vetra buried her nose in her wife’s hair, inhaling the scent that made her feel so safe and loved. The scent of home. “My home.” And it was true. Home wasn’t a place for her, it was a person, well… two really.

=====

As promised, the couple arrived on time at Drack’s apartment to pick up their baby.

“Oh, hey Ryder.” Drack gleefully greeted them when he swung open the massive steel block that passed for a door waving them into his home.

“VERA! MAMA!” Artemisia excitedly bounded off the couch like a little puppy, not realising that a Krogan couch was much bigger than the one they had at home and that it was quite a distance to fall. She laid there frozen in shock before her little brain registered the pain and she began to sniffle and cry.

Both mothers scrambled to carry and comfort their daughter, fussing over her and making sure that she was uninjured. Thankfully her hard plates had absorbed most of the impact. “I think she just called me mama!” Ryder gasped. “And she called my name.” Vetra was just as stunned as her wife. “Say it again! Say it again my little princess!” Vetra was elated. Her daughter had learned to call for her.

“Vera mama! Rara mama!” Elizabeth clapped her hands, pumping her legs as she saw the wide grins spread on her mothers’ faces.

“She knows our names!” Sara squealed, doing a happy jig on the spot as she cooed and tickled her daughter’s nose. "But why is she naked?"

“That's err, a long story that may or may not involve a de-atomiser. But it's one that I'd rather let the Turian tell you. It's his fault really, but  _I_  can make your day ten times better.” Drack smiled, tilting his head for them to follow. “I present to you, John Johnson. Rookie bounty hunter _and_ a close friend of the one they call Jaeger.” Drack cracked his knuckles at the terrified looking man, who whimpered out a soft “No more.”

“He has kindly volunteered the information that Jaeger’s current hideout is located in one of the last Roekaar bases, the very same one we were planning to attack.” Avitus chuckled, looking over his sharp talons as if admiring nail polish. “What shall we do with this piece of meat now?” Avitus flashed forward with blinding speed, talons millimetres away from ripping out the poor man’s throat.

“Don’t kill him. Lock him up. In the unlikely event that Jaeger comes for him, we have nexus security to back us up. If not, we storm the base and kill him.” Evangeline Ryder snarled.

Jaeger had played hide and seek for too long now. Evangeline was tired of playing his games. Now the hunter was about to become the hunted.


	16. When It All Falls Down

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I er...  
> I may have gone a little overboard. I just couldn't stop writing. So yeah this chapter is just shy of 16500 words, two chapters in one because of the long wait. So a lot of stuff happens in this one and I'd really like to hear what you think of the current story direction. I have a bit more planned for the next chapter which will follow Ryder after the last scene in this one. After which, I kinda want to do a small time-skip to focus entirely on Artemisia growing up and all the cute fluff that comes with it.

** When it all falls down **

** 2 Weeks later  
Typhon (Roekaar fortress world) **

****ADF Carrier-James MacAllen Crew assignment:  
Cmdr Sara Ryder-Nyx  
Cmdr Avitus Rix  
Lt Scott Ryder  
Lt Cora Harper  
Dr. Elsie Hughes  
Dr. Suvi Anwar  
Lt Kallo Jath  
Chief Engineer Gil Brodie   
Specialist Vetra Nyx-Ryder  
1,700Naval Personnel (3 Marine Battalions  & Auxilaries)  
180 Pilots (60 Human, 12 Asari, 20 Salarian, 70 Turian, 10 Krogan, 8 Quarian)

 ****ADF Medical ship-Hopeful Crew assignment:  
Dr. Lexi T’Perro  
Lt Liam Costa   
Specialist Jaal Ama Darav  
2,600 Naval Personnel  
540 Medical Staff  
20 Pilots

**** ADF Titan Dropship-Nackmor’s Fist Crew assignment:  
Nackmor Drack  
9 Krogan Pilots

_< Start transmission>_

Militia (radio): _Broadsword Command, this is the Militia 9 th fleet! We have been ambushed by A.O.D at planet Typhon! The Intel was wrong!_

Militia (radio): _Roekaar point defence Port Side! Port side!_

Militia (radio): _We’re taking hits!_

Militia (radio): _This is no ordinary Roekaar operation!_

Militia (radio): _We are going down! Repeat, we are going down! Coordinates to follow!_

Militia (radio): _Ma’am we’ve lost the Rickman!_

Militia (radio): _I’m seeing a ton of Anti-Orbital Defences! None of it was on the charts!_

Militia (radio): _Decompression on decks five through nine!_

Militia (radio): _All hands abandon ship! Repeat, all hands abandon ship!_

Militia (radio): _Get to the lifeboats! We’re going down! We’re going down!_

Militia (radio): _This is the ADF James MacAllen! We are going down! I repeat, we are going down!_

Militia (radio): _They’re jamming us hard! We’re not getting through!_

_< End transmission>_

=====

Breathing.

The sound of it, drawing thick smoky air into your lungs. That wheezing whine as you choke and cough on the burning air that your body craves yet your mind screams not to breathe in. You can’t help it. You take another breath.

Breathe in.

Lips trembling and jaw working in a wordless scream as your throat constricts and becomes dryer than the deserts on Eladeen.

Breathe out.

The screaming quietens for a moment, allowing you to realize that it was coming from your own mouth.

A disembodied voice speaks.

_“Lifeboat Medical Unit activated. Occupant: Milita Rifleman- class three Ashley Tan. Third battalion marines. Stabilize. 250 milligrams of Sansufentanyl- Administered. Caution- Temporary side effects – nausea, dizziness, impaired motor coordination.”_

The door to your pod hisses and flies away, exposing you to the rain. Something explodes nearby and dirt rains down on you, sticking to your skin and stinging your eyes. Gunfire and screams pour in. Shouts of agony and rage.

Somewhere, some Militia grunt shouts orders. “Get to firing positions! We got more coming this way!”

“Are we near the drop zone?” Someone asks. “We are way off target!” Another replies.

“We are the target!”

Everything comes in discontinued flashes, as if someone were shining a strobe light directly into your face. Shapes and forms blend together, creating monsters of death and mangled limbs and organs.

“Ashley. Ashley!” Someone screams at you, throwing you a flatline assault rifle. You try to grab it, but you miss. It lands in the mud. You scramble to pick it up and hear a thud next to you. The man that had passed you the rifle only seconds ago lies dead next to you.

You turn away, squeezing off a few rounds, hoping to avenge him.

“I can’t see anything!” Someone shouts. You look up to see a huge fireball falling from the sky. Another man tackles him to the ground. “Incoming Debris! Move!”

The impact throws you back. Something hard collides with the back of your head and the world goes black.

=====

** ADF James MacAllen   
3 minutes after impact. **

“Gil gimmie a sitrep!” Ryder shouts. The bridge is in chaos. Fires and sparks are everywhere. This is her fault. This is all her fault. Throwing a glance to the side where her brother wrestles with a burning console, fire extinguisher on full spray.

“Multiple hull breaches. Fires reported from decks twelve to twenty-seven. Casualties… it’s not looking good. Elsie’s with them now. Hull integrity at 67% Weapon systems at 23% and charging. Auxiliary flight systems at 46% and falling. Main engines are shot. Our drive core was breached and we’re leaking Eezo like there’s no tomorrow. How’re we gonna get out of this one Ryder?” The screen shows Gil hunched over his terminal, sweat dripping off his brow. Hair a mess of soot and grime. Eyes haunted as shadows dance across his face from the raging fires.

“With grit and determination. Pull yourself together and patch us up as best you can. I don’t care if you have to use duct tape and spit. The marines are depending on us. We’re their only ride home dammit.” Gil snaps a crisp salute. “Yes ma’am.” He says and severs the connection.

“Avitus.” Ryder tabs the console, bringing up the Turian commander. He looks like he’s in between decks, soot and dust coating his plates. He ducks out of frame and returns with a wounded soldier on his shoulder. His right arm is hanging limp as the feed bobs and shakes with his footsteps. Stepping into a cargo bay, Ryder catches sight of the many wounded soldiers lying on the ground. Doctors and nurses milling around, treating as best they can. In the background, Turian marines stand strong in neat 9-man squads. Their faces stoic and prepared, a testament to Turian military discipline.

“We’re a bit shaken up, but we still got some fight left in us. My marines will secure a perimeter around the McAllen. But we can’t get off the ground until their DEAD _(Directed Energy Aerial Defence)_ systems are taken down. We can’t risk our gunships.” Commander Avitus nods at the holographic gun emplacements, holding his broken arm in place while a tech helps him construct a makeshift splint. Ryder nods to him and closes the connection.

“Is she safe?” Ryder asks SAM while her eyes rapidly scan over damage reports.

“Yes Commander. Vetra’s escape pod was successfully jettisoned before we hit Typhon’s exosphere. They’re safe with the rest of the fleet up in high orbit.” SAM knew all too well who ‘she’ referred to. “All non-essential personnel have also been evacuated. The remainder of third battalion managed to eject before the hull was further compromised and further losses were incurred.” The AI continued, showing Ryder a simulation of the DEAD impacts. “However, we are cut off from the rest of our support. It seems our enemy was aware of our plans and ship capabilities. Third battalion escape pods are landing on Typhon as we speak.” SAM spoke calmly. His blue globe avatar hovered serenely over the holotable.

“This must be Jaeger’s last stand. He knew he didn’t stand a chance against us unless he separated us from our titans. Damn it! How many do we have left?” Scott gripped the edge of the table. Reigning his anger in by pure willpower.

“Just under 50 sir, the bulk of them were taken out when the hangar was gutted, together with the engines. Our Comms array is also down. We’re working on it.” A tech answered him.

“Cripple and weaken the beast first. Just like a hunter. Jaeger lives up to his name.” Cora checks her shotgun. She’s already in full armor, helmet on her belt, ready to drop with the rest of the marines.

“Not if we get him first. Do we have anyone on the ground? Anyone at all?”

“Not much. We’re stretched pretty thin. The bulk of our forces at the moment consist of Avitus and first battalion. Half of second battalion got spaced during descent and most of third battalion is scattered halfway across Typhon. I have no idea how many frigates or cruisers made it through with us. Most of our fleet is still up in orbit, staying the hell away from here until we clear the air for them.” Cora presses her palms together in front of her face. Closing her eyes and taking a calming breath. “Our pilot complement got halved.” She paused and added a muttered “At least they went quickly.”

Ryder nodded, taking in the grim news. This was precisely why she hated being in command. Tabbing the radio, she called Elsie.

“Elsie, please tell me you have good news.”

“As good as can be Sara. Most injuries won’t take more than some medigel and a few bone regenerations. I’m treating the burn victims as best I can but...” The doctor looked away for a moment. Her lips pressing into a tight line. “I’ll do my best. I’ll get them in good enough shape to fight again. I promise.”

=====

** Typhon **

The first sensations that returned to her were the taste and smell of dust, underscored with notes of copper. Her eyes weren’t working properly; neither were her ears. The sideways world was muffled and dark, her head throbbed.

Her left cheek burned. Her lungs were full of something heavy and suffocating. When she coughed, the pain would only get worse. All she wanted to do was just continue lying there but she knew that if she did, she was dead.

Arms quivering, she got herself upright and didn’t understand why the world was suddenly so dark. Fire spread from above her right hip. Her ribs protested when she drew breath into her lungs. Everything hurt.

Blinking dust out of her eyes, she felt around, her fingers scrabbling in the coarse, wet dirt. Her eyes were open, she was sure of that, she was blinking just fine. They just weren’t working. “You’re blind. Don’t panic, just… keep calm. You’re blind, it’s fine. Just keep moving. Goat to find Mel.” Ashley whispered to herself as she crawled through the mud on her hands and knees. She couldn’t let her panic get the best of her. Her hands hit something cold and hard. Her fingers felt up and down the object, finding the familiar grip of a flatline assault rifle. Hugging the weapon to her chest, she clicked the mag release and ran her finger down the side of the clip, counting the number of rounds she had. 18 plus the two 12 round mags for her pistol, 42 bullets in total. “Mel, I swear you had better be alive.”

Her surroundings are eerily silent, only the slight crackling of fire as if she was by a fireplace. The smell of wet earth, rain and singed flesh stung her nostrils.

And then something moved.

Ashley froze, ears straining for any clue about what it was.

It was slow, heavy and heading straight for her.

“Identify yourself or I’ll shoot!” She shouted, whipping her rifle back and forth, pointing it at any sound she could hear.

“Ashley…” She heard her name uttered by another lost soul, someone who knew her.

“Graves?” She let the question hang in the still air where at any moment it could join the smoke and be carried away together with her hopes that somehow, her only friend was still alive.

“Run.” His voice was strained, hoarse as if he was desperately trying to crawl away from something while warning her. Then she heard it. A soft, wet snuffling of some animal sniffing around the corpses. Soon the other sounds started. Sounds of flesh being ripped from bone. Screams of horror and pain from soldiers not quite dead yet but unable to escape from the wild beasts. She grips her rifle tighter, fingers nearly cramping in the frigid mud, teeth clenched tight like a bear trap. She heard heavy thuds of multiple animals moving about the crash site, surrounding her.

“Come to Andromeda they said, discover new plants and lifeforms they said.” She mutters to herself with a dark laugh, bracing herself against what she assumed was a fallen over tree trunk. If this was it, her last stand, she was gonna go out fighting.

Footsteps, many of them turning towards her, picking up speed. They had caught her scent. Like wolves descending on a helpless rabbit, they bounded towards her, baying and barking for their free meal.

Something huge and heavy comes through the trees, breaking torso thick trunks like toothpicks, sending splinters flying. She hears the unmistakable sound of a titan’s gun. 20mm slugs burying themselves in flesh and dirt. Barks and yelps of animals torn to shreds.

“You’re in bad shape rifleman, hold on.” She hears the pilot disembarking, closing the distance between them quickly. The sound of Velcro and then something cold and hard slides through her skin.

“Experimental Pilot stim. This is gonna hurt.” He says, giving her one last chance to back out.

“Do it.” She says. A soldier is only as good as their skills. Without her eyes, she’s useless and has no chance of survival. And then it starts, the worst, most horrible pain she has ever felt. Her skin is on fire, her eyes burn like somebody jammed a blowtorch into her eye sockets and turned it to max.

“Make it stop! Please make it stop!” She’s screaming and crying, thrashing in the mud, grabbing fistfuls of leaves and dirt. The pilot pins her arms, holding her down when she tries to roll her face into the mud to cool the flames. Her legs kick uselessly against his grip. She kicks and screams, back arching and boots scrabbling for purchase in the mud. She screams until she’s out of breath, body squirming in the dirt as tears flow from her eyes.

“That’s it. That’s it, now open your eyes.”

Ashley blinks them open, straining to see past the muck and dirt in her vision. She sees the vague outline of his features, brown hair, stubble and a diamond shaped badge on his chest plate. Her eyes still sting so she squeezes her eyes shut, hugging her knees to her chest and rolling onto her side.

“Multiple hostiles detected. Recommend you embark immediately pilot.” The titan calls to him, opening its cockpit. The pilot turns to her one last time, slamming another vial into her. “This might knock you out, but you’ll be okay when you wake up.” He says, swiftly bounding away towards his titan.

Her limbs turn to rubber and her mind slows down. _You’ll be okay when you wake up._ His words echo in her skull as the edges of her vision start to recede inwards. Time seems to slow down between blinks for the next few seconds. She blinks in time with her heartbeat in her ears. Slow, loud and blocking out all other sound. When before she could only hear, now she can only see, lie there in the mud and watch helplessly as one of those wolf like creatures leaps out of the bushes, tackling the man to the ground and viciously swing him around like a chew toy. Behind him, his titan fires its weapon on full auto, trying in vain to kill as many animals as it can and save its pilot up until their connection is severed and the titan collapses like so much dead metal.

She tries to scream, she knows it will attract the animals. She wants to. She can’t bear it, another life gone before her eyes, but she can’t. The drugs won’t allow her. Her jaw is locked shut, her mind slipping away. She is trapped in a prison of her own body.

She is shaken awake by something grabbing her leg and pulling. Eyes snapping open, she’s greeted by snarling fangs and dangerous claws. The creature flares its crest, hissing like a cobra, fangs bared. Lunges towards her.

Ashley screams, unloading her pistol into the wolf creature, ignoring the purple blood splattering onto her. Pulling the trigger until the gun clicks empty and the animal lies dead and heavy on her chest. She shoves it off her and squeezes her eyes shut at the overdose of light. Everything is just so damn bright she can’t see a thing. She squints at her ankle where the animal had bitten her, intending to drag her away. To its den, probably to feed on her. She shudders at the thought, rolling up her pant leg to get a closer look at the wound.

Never again would she complain about the thick, incredibly hot uniform pants. It had saved her ankle and in turn, her life. Asides from some bruising and a few pinpricks of blood, the class three shrapnel and stab resistant material had done everything it had been rated to do and more.

Covering her eyes with her hand and peering out the tiniest crack between her fingers, Ashley slowly makes her way over to the final resting place of the brave pilot. Stumbling and crawling through the mud.

There was not much left of him. Most of his body was mangled beyond recognition. As if he’d been caught in a sandstorm on Arrakis and had the flesh stripped from his bones. His holo-tags were missing so she has no idea who he was. Blood and entrails covered the ground. She covered her mouth in horror, tearing her eyes away from the gruesome sight. Bile bubbled in the back of her throat.

Choking back tears, she gently took off his helmet. It had a large gash in it, but it was still relatively intact. His face serene and unblemished made it seem like he was only asleep. Even though he was missing the rest of his body. “I’m sorry.” She cracked. Cradling his mangled torso to her chest. Not caring that his blood was soaking into her clothes. She was covered in mud and soaked through already anyways. What more was a little bit of blood?

She stared at his face until her eyes stung from strain and tears. He does to save her. She couldn’t let his sacrifice be in vain. She had to survive this. She had to finish the mission.

“I will avenge you. You have my word.” She whispers to his corpse, taking his jump pack and helmet and laying him in as much of a dignified position as possible. She collects stones and rubble and builds him a tomb, placing a single spent bullet case atop the pile. “Your sacrifice will not be forgotten.” She swears, donning his helmet.

She knows that she can’t use any of its functions and features because she never got authorisation, but at least the polarised visor will allow her to see without squinting permanently or covering her eyes completely. Anything beyond three feet is blurred to the point of being painful to her but at least she can still see somewhat. Any amount of sight, no matter how little is better than being completely blind.

She walks over to the fallen titan. She notes with interest that it is one of the newer Monarch class titans. Still highly experimental, this class of titan had the unique ability of being able to upgrade and adapt itself to any battlefield via its unique upgrade core.

“User not recognised. Please state authorisation code.” The titan says. It’s blue eye boring into her as she approaches.

“I don’t have that. Your pilot…”

“Authorisation not recognised. Self-destruct sequence initiated. Data core purge in ten minutes.”

“No! Don’t do that. Reconsider, please. We’re the only ones still alive down here. We need to finish the mission.”

“Negative. You are not authorised. Scanners indicate multiple militia squads still active on Typhon. They will finish the mission.”

Ashley threw her hands up. “What are your protocols huh? Answer me titan! You are still functional are you not? Y-”

“Authorisation not recognised. Self-destruct sequence engaged. Data core purge in nine minutes twenty-three seconds.”

“I can’t believe I’m arguing with a titan.” Ashley angrily chucked a large rock at the titan’s ocular hub which pinged harmlessly off the hardened steel. “People are dying. _I_ will die out here if you don’t help me. If we work together, we can finish the mission.”

“Authorisation not recognised Self-destruct sequence engaged. Data core purge in eight minutes forty-six seconds.” The titan still refused to even acknowledge her. It’s glowing blue eye still trained on the same spot on the ground.

“Your pilot died for me! He died so I could live! Your job as a titan is to protect the interests of the Initiative is it not? I’m part of it! Your job is to protect _me._ Now please, people are dying out there. My friends are dying out there. Help me save them.”

The titan was silent for a whole minute before it spoke again. “Data protection protocols suspended. Resuming normal operational protocols.” The titan stood up to its full height, reloading and stowing its weapon. Panels and plating moved in sequence as it performed self-diagnostics. “Diagnostics complete. Systems at optimal capacity.”

The titan crouched down and opened its cockpit. Internal lights blinked on like a landing strip, beckoning her inside. “Pilot, we must establish a neural link in order to proceed. Please embark when ready.” The titan’s deep baritone voice sent shivers down her spine. She allowed a small smirk to cross her lips as she picked her way up one metal arm, ready to climb inside the heavily armoured cockpit. _I successfully talked down a_ Titan.

She glanced around the cockpit, at all the flashy buttons and rows of switches. _Keep calm Ashley. Don’t geek out. You’re in a titan. Nothing to it. Wait, did it call me pilot? NO WAY._ She was doing it. Sitting in a titan’s cockpit and getting ready to link with it. If someone had told her that she, a rifleman of the lowest rank would one day sit in a titan’s chair and become a pilot, she would have clocked the fella over the head and called him mad. But here she was, and it was magical.

“All right.” She took a deep breath and climbed in. Almost immediately, the titan stood back up, her head moving with the motion as the titan got to its feet. She could see her small footprints in the mud and it really drove home how much bigger she was now. The cockpit doors closed, and she was surrounded by darkness.

Small yellow text appeared on the ocular display panels at the same time as the titan spoke. “Protocol 1: link to pilot.” The word STANDBY flashed on the screens at the same time as she felt a small prickling start at the back of her mind.

“Establishing neural link.” The titan said. Electricity crackled across her nerves making her grip the armrests till her knuckles ached. Green dots danced in her eyes as the link solidified. She looked at her hands and saw through the ocular panels that the titan’s arms followed her movements.

“Neural link established… Rifleman Ashley Tan – you are now confirmed as acting pilot of AE-6539. Protocol 2: Uphold the mission. – Resume special operation 217: Rendezvous with Major Anderson of the ADF.”

Ashley blinked and flexed her fingers. Gunfire erupted outside, plasma and bullets splattered against AE’s shields. “Protocol 3: Protect the pilot. Scans indicate severe damage to your optic nerve and cornea. Supplementing vision…Standby.”

Ashley yelped in surprise as her eyes seemed to stop working and, yet she could see better than she ever had in her life. She could see all around her at once, she could see each individual droplet of water in the air, each hypersonic round thundering towards them. She slams her eyes shut. “Fuck!” _Can’t see anything. Too much._ She blinked, and her vision returned to normal, a simple HUD layered over it. “I have limited visual input for you pilot. This will prevent you from getting disoriented or overwhelmed.” DT said. _Wow. He can read my mind._ “Affirmative pilot. The neural link allows me to directly interface with your thoughts much like a pathfinders SAM implant.”

“Re-initializing critical systems… Vortex shield online.” DT announced. Ashley felt a current flow down her left arm. Lifting her hand and spreading her fingers caused a rippling wave of energy to snap into place in front of her. Orbs of plasma dissipated harmlessly while bullets stopped and floated serenely in the energy field. “The Vortex shield catches incoming rounds and missiles. Release the field to launch any captured objects back at the enemy.”

“Huh, good to know.” Ashley remarked as she did just that, effortlessly slaughtering half the Angara with their own projectiles.

“Pilot, the Acolyte pod is online. This shoulder mounted rocket pod will lock onto multiple enemy targets. The longer you hold down the button, the more locks you will achieve.” This made Ashley grin. “Justice rains from above!” She gleefully shouts, unleashing a salvo of missiles at her unfortunate targets.

“Neural link complete. Primary weapon and Motion Link re-established.”  Sensation floods her legs and she can feel every pebble, every grain of sand squishing between her metal toes as she takes her first steps inside a titan, feel the weight of the XO-16 Titan assault rifle in her hands and it is glorious.

“Caution. Multiple incoming enemy signatures detected. We will have to fight our way to safety. Get ready.”

“Great, just gotta kill a few bad guys.” _I can do this. No one else has to die. Not on my watch._ “A positive attitude can only improve our situation.” AE rumbles his approval and they set off, thundering through the foliage, XO-16 spitting white lightning.

=====

_“This is Captain Cole of the 3 rd militia grenadiers to any militia survivors. We are relocating to the alien spire at map grid 772-981. Anyone copy?”_

_“I repeat, this is Captain Cole of the 3 rd militia grenadiers to any militia survivors. We are relocating to the alien spire at map grid 772-981. Anyone copy?”_

_“This is Sergeant Ezzo from the 2 nd militia Fusiliers. We read you Cole. We’re gonna make our way over to you through the reclamation facility. Over.”_

_“Copy that. Keep your heads up. Cole out.”_

The empty drop pod’s radio chittered in her ear as she picked her way through the dense jungle which soon gave way to rocky cliffs. Sheer vertical walls of stone and dirt compressed over millions of years. Her radio was broken, and AE’s self-repair systems could not identify the fault. They were on their own, unable to call for backup but hauling ass to link up with any survivors.

“I am unable to progress further pilot. The terrain ahead can only be crossed by jumpack. I suggest you disembark and scout ahead for an alternative route.”

“Good idea… AE.” Ashley thumbed the hatch release, dismounted and landed neatly on the ground.

“You may call me Ace. That is the nickname my previous pilot gave me.” The titan rumbled.

“Ace, got it.” She nodded.

“Traversing long vertical walls requires the use of jumpack assisted wallruns. Enabling ghost runner tutorial.” Almost immediately, a blue spectral hologram formed in front of her, showing her a projected route to the next stone platform. _No time like the present._ She took a running start, planting her feet solidly on the wall, running as fast as her momentum would carry her. Jumpack slowing her descent just as she’d seen pilots do countless times in the simulations. But she’d mistimed the jump and suddenly found herself just out of arm’s reach of the platform. Panicking, she pumped her legs in a vain attempt to find purchase. Her HUD blinked a protesting message at her, JUMPACK: OFFLINE…Recalibrating to new user.

“Shit, shit, shit, shit, shit!” She clawed frantically at the unyielding rock. Jamming her fingers into a crevice and grabbing hold of a thick vine. Stopping her fall. Unfortunately, it also meant that her shoulder dislocated. Painfully.

Panting hard against the pain, she quickly transferred her grip to her other hand before her injured arm lost grip completely. Unable to lower her arm in a controlled fashion, she braced herself as she let it drop heavily to her side. Blinking tears out of her eyes, she slowly crawled her way to safety. Suppressing whimpers as she did so. She cradled her arm, a soft cry of pain hissed through her teeth when her elbow bumped into a loose pebble. Sending a jolt of pain shooting through her.

“Are you alright pilot? Ashley.” Ace inquired. His optic hub wide in worry.

Ashley lightly shook her head. “My arm…” she slowly tried to close her right fist, hissing in pain as she forced her trembling fingers to obey. “I think it’s broken.”

“Protocol 3: Protect the pilot.” Ace popped one of the many tiny compartments on his chassis, releasing a tennis ball sized repair drone. Wrapped in kinetic shields and mass effect fields, the tiny drone effortlessly hovered over to Ashley, first aid kit in tow.

“Please hold still. Beginning diagnostic tests.” The drone’s tinny metallic voice told her. Orange beams swept over her arm. “Diagnostics complete. Fractured collarbone and dislocated shoulder detected. Recommend use of osteo-regenerator after re-setting of shoulder joint… would you like an anaesthetic?”

“No. Just do it. We need to keep moving. I need to find my squad.”

“Acknowledged. Starting procedure.”

Blue mass effect fields enveloped her arm, straightening the limb and slowly moving it into position. “Commencing realignment in 3…2…1…” The drone wrenched her arm back into alignment, impervious to her curses and screams of pain.

Panting hard, Ashley stared at the drone’s camera. “I swear, I’m gonna find whoever programmed you and dislocate his arm so he can find out how this feels.” She threatened. “Commencing bone regeneration.” The drone droned on, ignoring her.

“Motherf-”

=====

** The _Hopeful_ **

Holding her daughter tightly as the pod rocked and bumped, Vetra had her hand pressed to the viewport, a loud keening cry tearing forth from her throat as she watched the MacAllen being torn apart by shafts of light. Fire bloomed on the vessel as shields failed and ablative hull plates were boiled away. Bodies sucked out into space by explosive decompression, floating merrily in the black like specks of dust buoyed on air currents.

“Spirits of air and darkness.” Vetra whispered. Lapsing into Turian in her numb shock. _All those bodies. Spirits please don’t let Sara be one of them._

Elizabeth seemingly understanding her mother’s distress, gently bit her shoulder, offering support. “I’m sure she’s alright. If I know anything about your second mother, it’s that she’s a fighter. She’ll come back to us, you’ll see.” Vetra stroked her infant daughter’s crest. Reigning in her voice and making it as steady as she could though inside, fear and sorrow pierced her heart making her voice seem hollow. _You had better not be dead. I can’t live without you. Don’t do this to me. Don’t do this to us. Please. You have to come back._

The little love bites on her shoulder gradually increased in strength and frequency until it actually became painful. “Ow. Elizabeth stop it you’re hurting mommy.” Vetra nudged the infant away from her shoulder nuzzling the little girl.

“Mommy pain.” Elizabeth continued to nibble on her mother.

“Yes. Your little teeth are sharp _mellis._ Be careful of them ok?” Vetra cooed, ever so slightly bouncing her daughter in her arms.

“Mommy pain.” Elizabeth said again, more forceful this time. Sinking her teeth into the tough hide covering Vetra’s collarbone. “OW! Yes! It’s painful. Stop it!” An admonishing rumble bubbled in her throat.

“No! Mommy pain!” Elizabeth insisted, her voice wobbling. Vetra smelt the salt of tears and the sharp tang of blood even before she realised the warm wetness on her neck. Her alarm built as Elizabeth’s eyes began to water, squeezing shut in pain. Salty tears leaking out and trailing down her cheeks. Blood seeping out of her nostrils, running down her lips and joining her tears to stain her shirt.

“Mommy pain! Mommy pain! Mommy pain!” Elizabeth shrieked over and over. Digging her tiny talons into Vetra’s shoulder and biting hard in between sobs. Through the window, Vetra could see the hodge-podge bulk of the _Hopeful_ slowly getting bigger. Built from two scrapped repair stations, the _Hopeful_ was certainly the ugliest thing to ever float in zero-g. At this moment though, it was the most beautiful ship Vetra had ever seen. For inside it, resided a state of the art hospital.

Vetra gunned the engine, hurtling towards the ship. Seconds ticked by as a remote drone latched on to the pod and steered it into the _Hopeful’s_ waiting hangar bay. Grabbing the hatch release, Vetra burst out of the pod, hardly waiting for the pod to stop moving.

“Somebody help! I need a doctor! Somethings wrong.” Vetra began moving in the direction of the medbay, breaking into a run cradling her screaming daughter. End to end, the _Hopeful_ was about a kilometre long. 75% of that space was dedicated to medical facilities and wards. Her pod had been brought in at the far end of the hangar which meant that a distance of about 200 metres separated her from the medbay.

Panting hard, Vetra flew down the hangar, jumping clean over a huge ammo crate to get there faster. She had no idea what was wrong, but her motherly intuition told her that every second mattered. Her daughter was burning up against her chest. Elizabeth usually ran hotter than a Human but cooler than a Turian at about 40°C. Now, she felt like she was boiling alive. Elizabeth’s skin went pale and clammy. Her body desperately trying to regulate its temperature by sweating. “Pant _mellis_ pant. I need you to pant as well. Breath in and stick your tongue out then breathe out. Let your saliva cool you.” Vetra poured on the speed. She was terrified. Her daughter thankfully had inherited her human mother’s advanced cooling system of sweating. Turian’s couldn’t sweat, their bodies having adapted to prevent excess moisture loss in the heat of Palaven.

Icy fear pulsed through her veins. Turian’s were known to die from fevers when their body temperature outstripped their ability to vent heat while panting. Or when they grew too exhausted and simply couldn’t pant anymore and Elizabeth was rapidly approaching the temperature of a hot coal. _Thank the spirits she inherited the ability to sweat. I only hope it’s enough._

“Lexi!” Vetra yelled, spotting the Asari doctor with her keen Turian eyes, closing the gap and almost throwing Elizabeth into the doctor’s arms in her haste. “I don’t know what happened. She was fine and then she bit me, and she cried, and her nose is bleeding and she’s burning up and she’s in pain and I don’t know what to do.” Vetra said. She was nearly hysterical with fear and worry. Running her talons across her crest and sub vocals a mess of keening whines. If she could cry, tears would definitely be streaming down her face right now as she watched her baby suffer.

“Vetra. Calm down.” The Asari doctor shook her friend’s shoulder, pulling her out of her hysteria. “You got her here as quickly as you could. You did _your_ job well. Now let me do _my_ job.” Lexi appealed to the Turian’s sense of duty and responsibility, hoping to calm her down by giving her a sense of structure and order. “You’re right.” Vetra swallowed, taking a deep breath to calm herself. “I need to get out of your way, so you can do your job.” She nodded to the Asari, leaving her daughter with one final peck on her forehead.

=====

** Typhon  
Ashley **

“No please god no.” Ashley covered her mouth in horror.

Slaughtered. All of them. Torn apart by beast and plasma alike. The stench of burnt and rotting flesh thick in the air. Blood ran freely on the ground, mixing with the mud and burning into noxious fumes when they came in contact with the tiny fires left by plasma weapons in patches of dead grass.

“This appears to be the remains of third battalion-badger squad. Your older sister was assigned to this unit.” Ace helpfully stated the obvious.

Ashley muttered a string of curses in Chinese then bent down to check the bodies. “I know damn well where she was posted.” Ashley hissed then called out in her native language. “ _Where are you da jie?”_ (older sister) Hoping against hope for a reply.

She got back to the gruesome task of searching bodies, turning over any females with black hair, checking their necks for the matching paper crane tattoo they both wore and closing eyes when she could. Though some threatened to overturn her stomach. Spotting a familiar braid, she dashed over and turned the body. Half her face was burned off and her features were too disfigured. With shaking fingers, Ashley brushed aside burnt hair to check the woman’s neck. No tattoo. Closing her eyes with a shaking sigh, she passed a hand over the mystery woman’s face in lieu of her eyes. There wasn’t anything left to close anyway.

Ashley rocked on her knees, holding the dead woman’s head in her arms, almost giving into the hope that Mel had escaped.

“I am picking up Melody Tan’s biochip 45 metres this way.” Ace stretched out his arm, pointing towards a cliff. The signal’s strength indicates she is underground. She may still be alive.” The titan rose, stumping towards the signal’s source. Ashley scuttled along in it’s wake, wiping away tears.

_Please be alive Mel. Please be alive._

“Scanners indicate the signal’s source is inside this cave. You must proceed alone. My chassis will not fit.” Ace gestured to a small hidden cave. She had not been able to see it as it was hidden behind an outcropping.

Moving inside on light feet, her breath escaped in light pants. Her heart thudding away with a staccato drum beat in her ears. With her enhanced sight from her helmet, the fresh red blood on the stone sucked her breath away. “Please no.” She hastened her pace, dashing the last couple of steps and ducking into a hole in the wall, following the trail. Belly crawling over small pebbles, she could feel blood soaking into her clothes. _Your sister’s blood._ Her mind whispered dark thoughts in her ear.

She dragged herself out of the confined space, crawling on her knees until the cave widened into a small chamber.

A woman, slick with blood, clutching her stomach. Rifle raised in one hand. Beautiful dark hair with wide brown eyes fierce and defiant, but her skin, oh so pale.

“Mel!” Ashley scrambled forward, sliding to her sister’s side. “It’s me Mel. I’m here.” Her hands shot to her sister’s face, holding her cheeks as wet streaks flowed down Mel’s face.

“I thought I lost you.” Mel laughed softly, blood seeping out the corner of her mouth while she moved her left hand to mirror her sister. Her blood-stained fingers leaving a trail down Ashley’s helmet. “Instead I find out my little sisters become a pilot.”

Ashley raised her arm, beginning to scan her sister’s body when a hand caught her arm. Mel shook her head, “Don’t bother. I’ve already lost too much blood. Please, take off the helmet… Let me see my little sister one… last time.”

“My eyes are damaged. I can’t see without it.” Ashley stated, already reaching behind to undo the seals. “Then don’t.”

Chucking the helmet aside, Ashley buried her fingers in her sister’s hair. Playing with the familiar braid at the back, the way she always used to do when they were younger, her forehead pressed against her older sister’s. “Please don’t go.” Ashley whimpered, hot tears joining with her sister’s. “I’m not going anywhere. I’ll always be with you.”

“I was supposed to take care of you.” Ashley fisted the cloth on her sister’s shoulder, holding her tight. Wishing that if she held on tight enough, Mel wouldn’t go. “We were supposed to take care of each other. And we did.” She felt the older girl’s lips crinkle up at that. Robbed of her sight, Ashley grasped around in the dark, memorizing the textures that made up her sister. Her fingers passed over the patch of differently textured skin at Mel’s neck. “I’ll always be with you little crane.” Her vocal vibrations passed up her fingers, making them tingle. Ashley felt the flesh underneath her fingers shudder and then go still. The sound of Mel’s breathing stopping at the same time.

“No. Please.” She hugged Mel’s head to her chest, crying her pain to the heavens. Her grief echoing off the small underground chamber.

Her sister was gone.

Her limp and unresponsive under her.

Tracing her features with her fingers one last time, Ashley steeled herself and closed her sister’s eyes, refusing to let anymore tears fall. She forced her fingers to make the movements, undoing the chain of Mel’s holotags and securing it around her own neck.

“There is only one person to blame for this.” Ashley whispered into her sister’s ear, drawing her combat knife to Mel’s customary braid. “And I will take revenge.” She swore and flicked the knife, severing the precious stalks and stashing it in a secure pocket.

=====

** Ace **

_Running system diagnostics  
_ 11/11/2819 04:17:43 PM: ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- __  
11/11/2819 04:17:43 PM: DEBUG - Current OS/Version: Titan OS “Monarch” Ver (6.2.9200.0) <English (United States)> [64-bit]  
11/11/2819 04:17:43 PM: DEBUG – System has been on for 397.7 hours.  
11/11/2819 04:17:43 PM: DEBUG – Running diagnostics on primary power systems…  
11/11/2819 04:17:43 PM: DEBUG – Battery 1- 46% Battery 2- 98% Battery 3- 100%  
11/11/2819 04:17:43 PM: DEBUG – Running diagnostics on auxiliary power systems…  
11/11/2819 04:17:43 PM: DEBUG – Auxiliary systems 100%  
11/11/2819 04:17:43 PM: DEBUG – Running diagnostics on communication equipment…  
11/11/2819 04:17:43 PM: DEBUG – Communications: OFFLINE- Irreparable damage to communications equipment. Checking auxiliaries…  
11/11/2819 04:17:43 PM: DEBUG – Auxiliary communication systems: OFFLINE   
11/11/2819 04:17:44 PM: DEBUG – Running diagnostics on main weapons systems…  
11/11/2819 04:17:44 PM: DEBUG – Weapons systems 97.8%  
11/11/2819 04:17:44 PM: DEBUG – XO-16 Chaingun: ONLINE  
11/11/2819 04:17:44 PM: DEBUG – Acolyte pod #1: ONLINE  
11/11/2819 04:17:44 PM: DEBUG – Acolyte pod #2: Functional- 97.8% integrity. Slight damage from enemy weapons fire.  
11/11/2819 04:17:44 PM: DEBUG – Upgrade core stage 1: COMPLETE- Arc rounds- INSTALLED  
11/11/2819 04:17:44 PM: DEBUG – Upgrade core stage 2: CHARGING: 52%  
11/11/2819 04:17:45 PM: DEBUG – Running diagnostics on defensive armaments.  
11/11/2819 04:17:45 PM: DEBUG – Shield generator- 100% Current shield strength 67%  
11/11/2819 04:17:45 PM: DEBUG – Charging shields…  
11/11/2819 04:17:45 PM: DEBUG – Shields at 100%  
11/11/2819 04:17:45 PM: DEBUG – Vortex shield: ONLINE  
11/11/2819 04:17:45 PM: -------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
<WARNING> DIAGNOSTICS INTERRUPTED  
<WARNING> ELEVATED STRESS CORTISOL LEVELS DETECTED IN: ACTING PILOT: ASHLEY TAN  
<ANALYSIS> EMOTIONAL DISTRESS CAUSED BY PASSING OF RIFLEMAN 2nd CLASS MELVA TAN  
<ACTION>    PROTOCOL 3: ACTIVATED…  
<ACTION>    PROTECT THE PILOT  
11/11/2819 04:17:46 PM: -------------------------------------------------------------------------------

=====

** The _Hopeful  
_ Vetra **

Vetra didn’t know what to do with herself.

She couldn’t sit still, she couldn’t eat, she couldn’t sleep, she couldn’t even breathe properly. Her daughter was behind reinforced glass, lying on a biobed while Lexi poked and prodded at her with all sorts of scanners.

She felt useless.

Her breath was still shaky and uneven, the 200-metre sprint had raised her heartrate enough that she was becoming lightheaded. Her blood unable to carry enough oxygen to her brain and her muscles at the same time. Her blood treatments had helped but she was still nowhere close to what she used to be. At least she no longer fainted while walking up the stairs.

She is a mother, the nest protector. The one responsible for the children, and she has failed to protect her child. Her child lies sick and defenceless and there’s nothing she can do. No predators to fight, no rivals to ward off. Her cave and nest instincts scream at her to be angry. Being Turian, she is no stranger to anger. She knows precisely what types of anger she feels. Protection-anger because her young is injured. Mate-anger because she is furious at Sara for forcing her to leave and failure-anger because she is too weak to do anything.

“I have failed as a mate.” She says to herself, letting herself sink against the glass. Back to the medbay, her head in her hands. With adrenaline wearing off and her mind finally able to think, it replays the last 20 minutes again. In perfect detail.

=====

They run down the passage connecting the bridge to their living quarters. Feet pounding against metal, dodging officers and ensigns.

The apartment’s lights flicker, and cracks appear in the walls. The ship shaking violently from a weapon impact, making them stumble. Without words, they turn and run for their daughter’s room. Sara punching the door release and going in, calling out for their little girl. “Artemisia!”

The little girl is huddled in the corner, next to her knocked over crib. Holding fiercely onto her baby quilt, eyes wide and visibly shaking in fear. She immediately got up and ran to her mother’s arms, chirping and warbling. “Mummy I scared.” She says, burying her snout in the comforting scent of her mother’s hair, sniffling quietly.

“I know you are honey, I need you to be strong now okay? Can you do that? Can you be strong for mummy? I’m going to pass you to mommy and then I need to go to work ok? I will be away. Just for a while. I promise. I’ll be back okay?” Artemisia sniffles and nods, letting herself be put into her first mother’s cowl.

“Vetra, take her and get to the lifepod now!”

“No! I won’t leave you! What happened to facing everything together? I thought you changed!” Vetra shouts. Rage and panic coursing through her veins, clouding her mind as they dodge a falling light fixture.

“Please just go!” Sara caught her arm, shoving her towards the emergency hatch.

“No! We’re in this together! Till the end! You promised!” Vetra lunged, trying to get around the shorter woman but Sara was faster, catching her waist and spinning her back around, using her momentum against her. Using pure strength, the human pulls her turian wife towards the lifepod.

“I lied. I should never have let us live on the MacAllen. What was I thinking? This is a combat ship. It’s no place for a family. I can’t let you endanger our daughter, Vetra you know that. I can’t risk your safety either.”

“You promised!” Vetra screams in anger, striking her wife across the face in a lightning fast blur. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean…” Vetra began to apologise, the shock of what she had just done setting in. Three red lines slowly appeared on Sara’s face. Her wife touched her cheek, looking down at her red stained fingers.

“I’m sorry too.” Sara said. Her hand glowing blue as she wrapped her wife and child in a biotic field.

“No!” Vetra tried to struggle but it was no use. Sara had her completely immobilized.

“I’m doing this for your safety.” Sara sealed them in the escape pod, pressed her lips to the glass and thumbed the eject.

A muttered “I love you.” was the last thing Vetra heard before she blacked out from the G-forces.

=====

“Nah kid, ya haven’t.” Drack nudges Vetra’s foot with his own with a grunt, extending his hand to her. “I know what you’re thinking but there’s nothing else you could’ve done. You can’t fight. Not anymore. You’ve got a young’un who’s barely outgrown her feathers.” He pointed inside the medbay, staring Vetra in the eye. “You’d be next to useless in a fight. Sara was right to get rid of you. You’d just get in the way.” The old Krogan battlemaster pulled the turian to her feet. “You’re the stay at home mom. She’s the warrior. Get used to it.” He smiled, showing yellowed teeth. Thumping her hard on the back. “And don’t worry about yer little girl. She’s just like her moms, tough, stubborn as hell and don’t take shit from nobody.”

Vetra turned slowly to the medbay, mandible tight to her cheeks. “I hope you’re right.”

After 10 more minutes of relentless poking and prodding, Lexi came out of the medbay. Her face set in her “doctor face” the neutral mask she always used when delivering grim news.

“How bad is it?” Vetra asked. “Can I see her?”

Lexi nodded and gestured for Vetra to follow her into the medbay, clasping her hands in front of her in the classic _I’m not a threat, please don’t kill the messenger_ pose. From her body language and the lack of an answer from Lexi, Vetra was steadily getting more and more worried for her daughter. Circling the back of one tiny hand with her thumb, Vetra crouched at the side of the bed. Her height letting her comfortably lay her chin next to her daughter while she stroked her cheek with her mandible.

Releasing a sigh, Lexi finally let spill. “I’ve given her a sedative to slow down her metabolic rate and administered a cooling solution. She should sleep for at least the next six hours. I will continue to monitor her, and I’ll let you know if anything changes.”

“How bad is it?” Vetra says again, voice trembling.

“As far as I can tell, she seems to have a tumour growing at the base of her brain. Just above the brainstem where a DNI would be installed. It seems to be benign at the moment but its also… strange. It doesn’t look like any tumour I’ve ever seen. It almost seems to be an organ of some sort.”

“Is it dangerous? Can we remove it?” Vetra asks immediately. Her brain is already running through the possibilities. _Will Elizabeth recover? Will she be damaged? What if they can’t remove it? Will she be disabled for the rest of her life? Will I get to watch her grow up, get married and have kids?_ Her rampant thoughts were smacked away by Lexi’s calm, measured words. “It is too soon to tell. I have to wait for the analysis from the lab before I can advise you. I promise I will let you know as soon as I get the results. But for now,” The Asari laid a hand on her Turian friend’s shoulder. “Please, get some rest.”

Vetra’s shoulders sagged under Lexi’s touch. She couldn’t do anything to help her daughter. “Can I…” she lifted her gaze towards Elizabeth, but Lexi shook her head. “I need to keep her here for observation. She’ll be safe. I promise.”

Vetra nodded lightly and turned to leave. Sorrow icing over her heart as she forced herself to walk away from her young. Knowing that she could do nothing but hope and pray.

Once Lexi was sure that Vetra was far out of hearing range, she called Drack in.

“That’s not all isn’t it? There’s something else wrong with the little ‘un.” Drack said, laying his massive paw gently on the little hybrid girl. Lexi nodded sadly. “Yes. She’s not… good. We still have no idea what the tumour is,” the doctor paused, bringing up the scans of little Elizabeth’s brain. “All we know is that it seems inert for now-”

“So, can it be removed?” The Krogan’s nose twitched at the colourful hologram of the little girl’s brain. The strange addition highlighted in pink, standing out from the blues, yellows and greens.

“I don’t think so.” Lexi shook her head mournfully. “It’s fused to the brainstem where the DNI for a biotic implant would have been inserted had Vetra and Ryder listened to me and had her exposed. It’s impossible to remove without either killing her or turning her into a vegetable.” The Asari pinched the bridge of her nose. “Then there’s also the matter of her DNA changes.”

“That’s not possible. DNA doesn’t change. I know that. Hell, even a kid’ll know that.”

“But it’s true…look.” Lexi brought up a screen. “This is the DNA sample we took of her when she was born.” She points to the left half of the screen where a double helix spins innocently. “This is the DNA sample I just took from her five minutes ago.” Lexi pulls up another double helix. This time, portions of it are highlighted in red. “These red portions show that parts of her genetic code have been changed, rewritten. In fact, just over 3% of her DNA has changed.”

“But she’s still her right? Three percent is not a lot.” Drack scratched his head. He did like Lexi but sometimes she got on his nerves. Couldn’t she just talk faster and get to the point? He knew she was much smarter than him but there was only so much of her ‘I can’t believe you don’t know this’ look before he wished he could bend her over and fuck her silly to wipe that _look_ off her face. Unfortunately, they hadn’t quite got to it yet. Though not for a lack of trying, they just hadn’t had enough time to see each other lately. Now that they were posted in the same fleet, they’d be making full use of the opportunity.

“Three percent _is_ a lot. Do you know what the difference between a human and a monkey is?” She puts her hands on her hips, tapping her foot impatiently, waiting for his answer.

“The ability to talk?”

“NO! Three percent! Three percent of their DNA is all that separates someone like Ryder from a monkey!” Lexi fumes at him, her tone growing more irate as she notices Drack start to grin. His smile getting wider and wider before he can’t stop himself from laughing.

“What? What’s so funny?” She demanded to know, glaring at the Krogan. Managing to shut him up for a moment before his amusement bubbles over again and he bursts out laughing again.

“You compared Ryder to a monkey.” He declares as if it’s the funniest thing he’s ever heard before bursting into laughter again.

“But it’s the truth! Humans share a common ancestor with primates!”

“I’d pay to see you say that to Ryder’s face.” Drack grins. His eyes alight with mirth and his yellow teeth bared in pure mischief.

“This is no laughing matter! We’re talking about a child here! Elizabeth is little more than an infant! She could be facing serious medical complications in the future! Complications that I have no idea how to tackle!” Lexi stops herself and takes a deep, calming breath. “The Kett are way beyond us in gene technology. I thought it was just junk code at first, like how every naturally evolving species has but… it clearly isn’t. Her DNA is actually perfectly written, almost like computer code. The portions I thought were junk were actually highly specialized modules of genetic code that unlocked when a specific stage of maturity was reached. None of her DNA is wasted. _All_ of it serves a purpose. The Kett are frighteningly good at DNA manipulation.”

“You need a break.” Drack suddenly said, wrapping his arms around Lexi’s waist and leaning forward so his bulk cocooned her. Hard armour plating making her feel safe and secure in his embrace.

“Do I now? Do I deserve a break when my thesis is now completely null and void because the study’s subject has been altered? Do I deserve a break when that study subject is sick and suffering from something I do not know how to cure or even deal with?” She turned around and jabbed a finger into his chest. Her voice steadily rising in volume again. “Do I deserve a break when that subject is the daughter of my boss and one of my closest friends? Do I?” Drack took her finger in his paw, tenderly holding her small, delicate hand in his large ones. His eyes searching hers.

“You do.”

He let go of her hands and wrapped her in a tight, Krogan hug. “You’ve been working non-stop on all your projects and studies and…other things that we haven’t had any time for _us._ ” The Krogan shifted his hands down to her waist, effortlessly lifting her up and moving her over to the other unoccupied bed. Lexi wrapped her legs around his waist for support, feeling his heat and hardness through the thick unplated crotchpiece of his armor.

“Really Drack?” She cranes her neck to look up at him, her lips quirked to the side in question.

“Hey, you should count it as a complement. Others my age would require drugs. Heh. Though they’d never admit it.” He chuckled, breathing in her scent as he nuzzled her neck with his snout. “I…love you Doc, and I’m not getting any younger. I want to spend whatever time I have left in this damn galaxy with you. If you’ll let me.” He flicked his eyes to hers. Uncertainty plain on his features.

Shocked by his sudden declaration, she took a few moments to return the sentiment. Her mind being too preoccupied with insinuation of his words. Something that both horrified and intrigued her. “But here? In the medbay? Any number of nurses could walk in! A-and Elizabeth is just over there!” Lexi pointedly flicked her eyes over Drack’s shoulder to the little girl’s tiny form.

“It’s okay. I won’t force you to do anything you don’t want to.” Drack stepped away, their hands still joined. Slightly disappointed but true to his word. If she didn’t want to, he wouldn’t force her. He would never hurt her. He liked and respected the female too much.

“But I want to…” She looked away shyly, a blush colouring her cheeks. “I’ve waited a long time Drack. A few hundred years to be exact.” She reached down and cupped him. It was true, she had never taken a lover. Even through medical school when most of the other maidens would sneak off with their lovers both during and after classes, Lexi much preferred a cup of tea and a good book. “I _do_ want you. Just…” _Not in the medbay where my colleagues could walk in and see me bent over and…bred by my Krogan boyfriend._ She finished the sentence inside her head, her thighs rubbing together unconsciously as a zing of pleasure shot to her core. Her heart was hammering in her chest and blood was pounding in her ears. In the few seconds that she thought about it, the pulsing in her core was fast becoming undeniable.

“Just…Not here. We’re in the medbay. I need to stay professional.” She said, swallowing a sigh. “Maybe tonight? In my quarters?” She asked, pushing her arousal away by pure willpower.

“Okay.” Drack hid his disappointment well, leaving quietly after a brief kiss to her cheek. He wasn’t a young, hot blooded male only capable of only two types of thoughts, blood and sex. He knew how to control himself. After all, she hadn’t rejected him. She had simply requested for privacy. A basic right between mates and one he could easily agree to if he wanted to assure her that he was the right choice for a mate. She valued him but also valued her duties and as a healer, her duties were undeniably important. Thus, he could wait. Till the stars burnt themselves out if necessary.

=====

** Vyminus **

Riker ‘parlum Bora polished his scales in the mirror. He was due to meet with the High priest and the The Speaker as the lord of House Bora. A ‘little light’ in the glorious radiance of the parliament of Vyminus.

Brushing black Kohl around his eyes, he regarded himself in the mirror. Long, muscular snakelike body still trim and fit. His scales glinted in the light with the sheen of scented oil he had applied. Almost forty but still looking like a man half his age, he was still a fine specimen of a male Vymin. Resembling Lamia of ancient Human Greek mythology, Vymin had the long snake bodies and humanoid torsos. Their heads were humanoid but distinctively serpentine with some Vymin having the flared hoods at the side of the head like cobras of earth. Some Vymin of the great house Vip’re even had venomous fangs. A point of high pride among their number.

Hailing from the great house Bora, Riker had the typical Bora build of wide shoulders and a powerfully muscled body. His ancestors had climbed trees and strangled prey with their bare hands after all. His scales followed the colouration of his lineage with brown scales covering the majority of his body. Dark brown and black bands ringed his abdomen and lower body like a boa constrictor of earth.

He took one last, long look at the mirror to ensure that his scales reflected and absorbed light in just the right way. Light was an essential part of the Vymin religion. The scripture story says that there were once two great cosmic serpents. The god of light and life, Aos and the goddess of shadow and death, Nyx.

The two great serpents loved each other dearly but could never be together because of their opposing natures. The universe demanded balance and they were its guardians. Dark and light must always be in balance but can never be together. Such was their curse.

Love however always finds a way. Nyx, after many a millennium learned how to control the strongest of powers at her disposal and used thousands of years of despair and sorrow to create the first black hole. Altering one of the stars, one of the gifts Aos had left behind for her to form it.

With the power of the black hole, Aos was finally able to stay long enough to finally touch his love. For the first time in forever, the spirits of light and dark existed in the same space. Wasting no time, the great serpents mated. Finally getting to express their love together.

From that mating, Vyminus was created. A lush, continental world sitting perfectly on the edge of a black hole with a lone star lighting their world. The last vestiges of the great serpents watching over their children from the heavens. Their scales becoming the continents, their tears of joy the ocean, their children populating the world as the Vymin. And so, to this day light and dark play a crucial role in Vymin culture with the use of mirrors and dark pigments being extremely widespread. Vymin houses often had a house mirror that denoted the station of the family that resided within. The larger and more ornate the mirror, the more powerful the family was. Riker’s for example had a large mirrored mural overhanging the main gardens. In plain view of all his visitors and servants.

Riker passed the small alcove where his wife rested in the eternal light. Kissing the mirrored urn lightly, Riker whispered to it. “Wish me luck _lumatra,_ I think I’ll need it today. Oh, and did you hear that Elora has been accepted into the mirror trials? Her name could become Elora _‘Mira_ Bora very soon. I think you’d be so proud of her. I know I am. Kiber is 16 now and halfway through the first month of warrior training. He’s really grown up. He wants to become a temple guard, says it will be an honour to follow in his mother’s footsteps.” Riker chuckles lightly, rubbing his thumb over the cool surface of the urn. “Though I think he just wants the bragging rights of having ‘Dur as his class name.” He smiles softly at his reflection. Imagining that his late wife was smiling back at him. Her tongue darting out to brush at the edge of his kohl in the special kiss that only married Vymin were allowed. Being able to remove a little darkness from their mate’s life and replace it with light. The sideways smirk on her face as she bade him farewell. Her hands resting on her forever pregnant belly.

That had been his last image of her before she had left this life and become one with the stars after giving birth to Elora. He missed her terribly but knew that she was always watching from her perch in the heavens.

Shrugging on an intricately patterned shirt befitting an _Illuminus_ , a lord, he left the bathroom and went to wake his daughter for her first day in the order of the mirror dancers.

“Elora?” A brief spark of panic shot through his chest as he opened the door to his daughter’s room and found her nest empty, his fingers twitching to his communicator. Cushions were strewn everywhere and her was blanket missing but as he went closer, he noticed that the pillows didn’t seem to have been thrown about by a struggle. Rather, they looked like the result of a tiny five-year-old trying to carry too many pillows and losing some along the way.

True enough, when he followed the trail of pillows and opened the door to Kiber’s room, there she was. Curled up in her older brother’s nest clutching her blanket. Her body wound tight around Kiber’s head pillow.

“Elora my girl.” Riker shook his head laughing as he approached the nest and lowered his torso to the ground. Even after five years, looking at his daughter never failed to send him back through time when he held her in his arms after that fear filled flight back from the council meeting he had been attending. He remembered how he had burst into the birthing chamber, rushing to meet his wife before she passed. Remembered how she smiled weakly at him, passing a small bundle of scales and soft silk to him. Remembered the soft joy and awe in her voice as she whispered in his ear the name of their daughter. _Elora._ Joy. He remembered parting the silks to find a pair of brilliant emerald eyes blinking back at him. Her tiny snow-white scales so delicately formed. The little pink tongue that darted out to taste his air.

Her scales had since matured and revealed that she had a unique mutation. A blessing from the gods in exchange for her hearing. Her scales naturally reflected and refracted light, making her sparkle and shine with all the colours of the rainbow whenever she went out in the sun. Her beauty outmatched even that of her mother’s a fact that pained Riker to no end. He knew that once she came of age, he would hear no end of courting requests.

Her eyes fluttered open and she curled tighter around the pillow, blinking blearily at the good morning Riker sent her way. Frowning and burying her head in the pillow again, Elora begged for five more minutes. Letting one eye peek out to see her father’s reply.

_“Now is no time for you to laze about young lady. The priests are waiting for you.”_

Still the little girl refused to move, curling up even tighter around the pillow. His laughter was unrestrained as he calmly picked up the pillow, glaring five-year-old and all and tucked it under his arm, carrying the bundle to the bathroom. Ordinarily, lords would have servants to do this but Riker preferred to keep his family as normal as possible and did most of the parenting work himself. Changing dirty diapers and waking uncooperative children included. Only the most menial tasks did he leave to the servants.

Setting her on the counter, Riker set about scrubbing and polishing her scales, making sure he could see his reflection in each and every one of her glossy smooth scales. Elora pouted through the entire process, always trying to crawl away whenever Riker turned to clean the brush or get more polish. Eventually, he managed to get her clean and dressed in her initiate’s garb: a soft pure white gossamer blouse.

“ _Are you sure they’ll like me? What if I’m not good enough?”_ Elora asked him, shoulders sagging and fingers moving slowly. Her lips tight with worry and fear, eyes downcast.

Touching her chin to tilt her head up, Riker stared into Elora’s eyes. Taking her small hand in his large one, he brought it to the side of his throat speaking slowly. Letting her read his lips and feel his emotion. “Elora, joy of light,” he smiled, lowering himself to come face to face with her, “you are the most graceful person I have ever seen. Trust me. I’ve been to countless festivals of the light and seen many mirror dancers in my time. None of them even come close to what you can do. You will do well.”

Cupping her cheek, Riker nuzzled the top of her head. “I predict great things for you daughter. The gods have blessed you for a reason. Never forget that.”

Elora nodded, puffing up her chest and putting on a brave face. Her father was right. He always was. The gods had touched her for a reason.

=====

** The Great Temple **

** Elora **

This was it. The big day. The first day of the trials.

Elora waved goodbye to her father and turned to the wooden door that barred the entrance to the second sanctum. The temple was separated into three concentric rings. The third sanctum was where ordinary folk could visit the temple and give their prayers to the gods. The second sanctum was restricted to temple staff and mirror dancers. The innermost sanctum was where the great mirror sat and was one of the most highly guarded places on the planet where only the priests and the most senior of mirror dancers were permitted.

Taking a deep breath and gulping down her fear, Elora pushed open the door and crept inside.

There were already many people there, at least 15 other initiates and their families. Her father had told her that only one would be selected in this trial. Her heart began to pound in her chest. Her father and brother were not with her, both busy with their own tasks. She was all alone. Her fear froze her in place, there were too many people, too many eyes and all of them were focused on her. She stayed there, stunned in shock for almost a minute until the class teacher called her forward. Or at least that was what Elora assumed she was doing. The teacher’s arm movements beckoned her forward and her lips were moving in what Elora could only assume as encouragement. The crowd of people parted for her, the little white snake that glittered in the light. She knew people were talking about her. She could read the whispers on their lips, feel their puzzlement and jealousy in their gazes.

The female lowered her body to Elora’s height and smiled at the little snake. The teacher clearly came from Vip’re heritage. Her features sharp and angular but she seemed different from all other Vip’re Elora had met.

 _She doesn’t have fangs!_ Elora suddenly realised.

She also realised that the woman’s mouth was moving a little too late, having been completely distracted by the woman’s lack of fangs. Elora embarrassedly raised her arms and began to sign. _“Could you repeat that? I missed your question. Sorry.”_

A look of understanding crossed the female’s face and she soon began to sign. Her words were slow and sloppy as she introduced herself. Elora just smiled and nodded. Not many people knew how to sign, and she would take all she could. The female introduced herself as Avi and kindly greeted the little girl with a firm tail twist. Introducing herself, Elora shyly licked her lips and nervously went around the class to introduce herself. Avi, thankfully helped her to talk to them so she didn’t need to use her own voice. She _could_ talk but preferred not to because she didn’t know how she sounded and didn’t want to embarrass herself even though her brother and father had often told her that she had a beautiful voice.

Once the introductions were over, it was time for the trials to start.

Avi gracefully showed the routine they had to try and copy first. The female twirled and rolled, coiling and uncoiling like a ribbon flowing in the wind, her body seemingly not even touching the ground. Elora watched in fascination. She had never seen anybody move like that. And she had to copy that? With one last flowing movement, Avi tumbled over backwards and formed a perfect eclipse, her body bent like two bows and ended her dance.

Taking a bow, Avi smiled and slithered to the side to catch her breath. It was then that Elora noticed two more Mirror Dancers had joined them in the hall. They both wore the garb of senior dancers and a lump formed in Elora’s throat.

The male senior scanned over the initiates, finally landing on her. His eyes were a bright sapphire blue, but they were as cold as ice and seemed to bore all the way into her soul. His head quirked to the side as his lips moved. He was asking why one so young had been excepted into the trials. It was true, the youngest of the other initiates was at least double her age. The male’s head snapped to the side when the female senior said something to him. When his gaze returned to hers, Elora shrunk under his intense scrutiny feeling like he was peeling back every one of her scales to see what was underneath.

Flicking his head, the male called a junior over to the drums. The seniors and Avi then sat down on the three cushions laid out next to the drums.

_Oh, by the great light of Aos, they’re here to judge us._

The initiates were lined up in a neat line and told to dance within the boundaries of the seal of the great mirror emblazoned onto the tiles.

The junior began to play, striking the huge drum. His body swaying with the beat. At the signal of the female senior, the trials started.

One by one, the initiates went forward, crawling onto the circular seal. Elora watched closely, seeing how the older initiates tackled the challenge. She could feel her heart pounding in her chest as the line got shorter and shorter. She watched the reactions of the judges, especially the male. He seemed to be the hardest to impress and seemed profoundly bored by all the acts he was seeing. He frequently wrote into the tablet in his hand and seemed to be taking note of all the missteps the initiates made. Right now, there was a young male in the ring, trying desperately to keep up with the tempo. Executing a perfect roll, he tried to do one of the leaps that Avi had done and slipped. Landing hard on his arm, the boy yelled in pain, rolling onto his back and clutching his arm to his chest. The male senior flared his nostrils in annoyance and gestured for the next initiate with a flick of his wrist.

So far, there were three other initiates that had nearly perfectly replicated Avi’s dance and they were off to the side clasping tails and congratulating each other. There were two more initiates in front of her and the trials were almost over. Elora had let the others push her out of line and all the way to the back without complaint. This served a dual purpose for her. She could distance herself from the rest and also watch how the others danced. She had not counted on the building sickening feeling in her stomach that increased whenever another initiate left the line.

Soon, the two girls in front of her disappeared and it was her turn. The feeling in her stomach reached its peak and she felt like she might throw up on the spot. Inching towards the circle, her hands began to tremble. The judges looked like giant monsters now, towering over her and looking like they could grind her bones to dust with one swipe.

Shaking the numbness out of her hands, Elora squared her shoulders and focused on the drums, trying to memorize the rhythm. Looking at Avi for a split second, she caught the reassuring smile the female sent her way. Counting out the beats in her head, Elora tried to do what she could remember of the many movements Avi had done.

 _1-1-2-2 3-4-3-2 5-6-5-6 7-7-8-8_ Elora tried to match the movements to the numbers but she kept faltering, missing beats and tumbling all over the place. Her movements jerky and hectic, trying to capture as much as she could of Avi’s movements but failing them miserably.

The male once again flared his nostrils and held up his hand to signal the junior to stop. Scribbling into his tablet, he said something and started to rise, apparently calling the trials to a close.

Elora waved her arms and pleaded with them for one more chance. Her fingers frantically forming the shapes and signals. _“Please. Just give me one more chance. Please. I can do better, I promise.”_ Elora was on the verge of tears.

The female senior and Avi agreed with kind smiles while the male angrily threw his tablet on the low table and crossed his arms. She looked back at the other initiates and saw that they were all talking rapidly but she paid them no heed. The drums were starting again. One more dance. One more chance to make daddy proud.

Elora closed her eyes and blocked out all the thoughts of where she was and what she was doing. She was just at home, in her room. Listening to music and dancing along. Feeling the vibrations, the physical reactions of the world to music. Feeling the very soul of music brushing over her scales and resonating in her bones.

Laying flat on her belly, Elora followed the circular shape of the seal, absorbing the vibrations of the drums and music. Swaying and twirling purely to what she could feel, she imagined that she was a flame dancing in the moonlight. Equal parts dark and light, moving in perfect harmony.

She arched and rolled, wiggling and coiling seemingly at random but always together with the music. So lost was she in the music that she was still dancing and moving until she felt a hand firmly grasp her shoulder. Opening her eyes, she blinked when she realised the male senior was the one that had stopped her. Only then did she realise that the drummer had stopped long ago and she had been dancing to nothing. Embarrassed, she dropped her head and began to apologise for wasting their time.

Her head shot up when the male held her fingers still and shook his head. Avi came over grinning and began to sign.

_“That was amazing. We’ve never seen anything like it. You danced without any music. It was like watching a flame embodied. Who thought you how to dance like that?”_

_“Nobody. I just followed what the music told me. I thought I was following the drums.”_ Elora scrunched her brows in confusion, pressing her palm to the ground for a moment. _“Yes, there it is. The music. I was following that.”_

Elora grabbed Avi’s hand and pressed it to the ground. _“I don’t feel anything.”_ Avi signed, smiling softly.

 _“Are you sure? It’s right there. It’s really…”_ Elora struggled for a moment, thinking of a word that could encapsulate the meaning of what she felt. _“Loud. You really don’t feel it?”_ Avi shook her head, no. Elora was bewildered. How could she not feel the strong vibrations from the ground? They seemed to be getting stronger by the minute.

The three Mirror Dancers moved away from her and began to talk to each other. Elora could tell by their postures and rapid glances to her that they were talking about private things. Private things that involved her. Scared by what they were talking about, Elora slowly backed away from the seal and tried to hide behind the other initiates but they shrank back from her, hissing and whispering.

Thoroughly terrified and with everyone either looking at her in fear or disgust, Elora did the only thing she could. She ran away, tears streaming down her face as she slithered away. Seeking the deepest, darkest hole she could find, she dove into a nearby storm drain and wiggled through the metal grille covering it, curling up in the darkness to cry.

Again, she felt the vibrations creep up her scales, making her skin buzz. “No. No. No.” she felt her own voice rasp in her skull, rough and coarse from disuse. She scratched at her skin, peeling off scales desperate to get rid of the unwelcome feeling.

The buzzing intensified, feeling like someone had jabbed a live wire into her. Elora squirmed and writhed. Electricity didn’t hurt Vymin thanks to their silicone based physiology which conducted it. However, it was still uncomfortable.

The feel of the buzzing on her skin ebbed and flowed like water, flowing over and touching every nook and cranny of her skin. Then for the first time in her life, Elora heard. A voice, whispering against her skin. She could feel, hear the words in the vibrations on her scales, understand the sounds as words for the first time.

“We have waited long for you young one.” A distinctly male voice crooned, his voice like the soft morning light, exuding peace and calm while at the same time unstoppable energy.

“Peace be with you little one. Do not be afraid. We mean you no harm.” She heard another voice against her skin. This one female, still calming and soothing. The female sounded like _nothing_ like she was listening to the void when she spoke.

Elora shook with fear. Not only had she failed her chance to become a dancer, she had failed her daddy and to top it all off, she was now hearing voices _on her skin._

“No STOP IT! Go away!” She wailed, covering her eyes with her tail and coiling up.

“You do not know it yet little one, but we have great plans for you.” The voices whispered against her skin as a blinding white light enveloped her.

“The first step of your journey awaits.”

=====

** Riker **

Waving goodbye to his daughter struck a chord in his heart. On one hand, he was terribly proud of his daughter being accepted into the trials and had no doubts that she would do well. On the other hand, she was growing up too damn fast. It seemed only moments ago he was holding the little bundle of silks in his hands and gazing into her tiny emerald eyes. Now she was already 5 years old and embarking on the journey most only dreamed of. One that would land her one of the most prestigious titles in Vymin society.

Checking the jewelled buttons on his shirt, Riker flicked his cuffs and gracefully slithered up the polished slope to the illuminated court. The Vymin parliamentary building and the residence of the rulers of Vyminus; the Executrix of House Ordos. The tripartite rulers represented the perfect balance between light, dark and shade and embodied the core values of Vymin society.

Passing through the many layers of security, Riker fiddled with his cufflinks nervously. He wished he could be at his daughter’s side, cheering her on in the trials just like any other parent but as a lord, duty called, and he had to answer. No matter how much he hated it.

He was just about to take a seat and settle in for the customarily long waiting times of court proceedings when a well-dressed servant called to him. “M’lord, their radiance will see you now. I have been told that it is a matter of utmost urgency and no further delays will be tolerated.” The servant gestured to a bookcase that obediently slid aside to reveal a hidden elevator.

Riker tipped his head, impressed. It was rare that the Executrix were so hasty in making decisions. Whatever had their tails in a twist was definitely something serious and Riker was not looking forward to finding out.

=====

Riker blinked in surprise as the elevator stopped. He had fully expected to be put in one of the council hearing rooms where lords and ladies debated before submitting their proposals to the Executrix who would make the final decree. He had not expected coming face to face with the Executrix themselves. It was a very rare honour indeed.

Riker tipped his head in the initiation of a bow, but one hooded figure stopped him.

“That will not be necessary _Illuminus_.” A female voice said. She sounded like calm waves and sea breeze.

“Time is of the essence.” A male voice said. He sounded like gravel and hard mortar.

“In effect, the great prophecy is.” Another voice said. It sounded genderless and ethereal, grounded but not.

“To Typhon you must go. A seal has been opened. The Outsider awaits.” The three voices said in quick succession.

_The Outsider? Great light of Aos, can it be true?_

=====

** Typhon **

** Sara **

“SAM, how much further?”

“Forward scouts report increased activity in the jungle 500 metres ahead. Scans indicate that the large energy signature I detected matches the profile of a class II plasma energy plant of Angara manufacture. It is highly likely that this is the powerplant for the DEAD system in this hemisphere.”

“Reading movement ahead. Men, form up on me.” Avitus called out, his Legion class Titan bulking in its matte grey paint. Only distinguishable from the other Turian Titans by its muted gold highlights.

“Incoming enemy fire!” An Optio shouted, raising his vortex shield to block the incoming shots.

“Form a line men! Hold Testudo!” Avitus called. Immediately, the legionnaires closed ranks and overlapped their shields in an ancient and highly effective formation. “ADVANCE!” Avitus barked.

Pulling out her sword, Sara backed away and circled around, using her superior speed to flank the enemy position while they were distracted by the advancing legionnaires. Effortlessly dismantling the gun emplacement with a few well-placed strikes, she whirled around and caught a shell on her blade, molten metal pinging off her shields. “Thanks for the warning SAM.”

“I think we just lost the element of surprise.” Avitus raised his predator cannon, spinning up his barrel at the advancing horde of furious Roekaar. “Gun shields up!” He bellowed, predator cannon spitting a torrent of hot lead. Phasing behind the defensive line, Ryder called out poor enemy placements and fortifications which were then obliterated by missiles launched from the Turian Titans.

“Cora, we’re advancing on the power plant now. Facing slight resistance. How’re things back there?” Ryder commed the forces still back at the MacAllen.

“SAM was right. They launched an assault almost immediately after you left.” The huntress chuckled darkly, “They had no idea we still had some titans left in the bays. Lost a few grunts, slight damage to two titans. Don’t worry about us. We’re fine back here. Focus on your part of the mission. If you don’t get the DEAD system offline, we’re not going anywhere.”

“Roger. Ryder out.” Sara keyed up the base schematics and scrutinised them, searching for a weak spot in the security that she could infiltrate and plant her charges. She briefly considered asking for some backup to cover her flank but ultimately decided against it. They would only slow her down. She was always a lone wolf anyway. Lift and charge, rinse and repeat. If overwhelmed, flamethrower to thin the crowd and cloak to retreat and regroup. It was a sound strategy that had served her well throughout her campaign against the Kett and if it ain’t broke, why fix it?

Breaking away from the formation, and using the thick vegetation surrounding the power plant, she managed to get to the west entrance. It was relatively lightly guarded compared to the mass of troops exchanging fire with the Turian titans at the front gate and also contained a cargo elevator that conveniently led directly to the reactor core. “Well whaddya know? Taan wasn’t the only idiot in Andromeda.” Sara disembarked. “Stay here. Guard my back. Don’t think a titan stomping around is very subtle.”

“Yes Sara.”

Sara pulled her smart pistol and cocked it. 24 shots. 22 targets. _Let’s roll._

The great thing about a smart pistol is that she didn’t have to think about aiming at all, all she had to do was pull the trigger. She could devote all her attention to _moving_.

On the battlefield, a pilot is unmatched in speed and agility. Experienced in deception and manoeuvre, whole battles shift in their favour.  The unfortunate Roekaar soldiers experienced this firsthand. Shooting a pilot was basically useless because she just _wasn’t there._

 _Snk snk snk_ the sound of Ryder’s pistol discharging interspersed with bursts of rifle fire filled the room. Within sixty seconds, 22 Roekaar lay dead on the ground. Each one of them with a perfect hole in the middle of their foreheads.

 _“No alarms triggered Sara. Proceed to objective.”_ SAM chirped.

“Got it. Proceeding. Tell Avitus to be ready to hightail it out of here. I have a feeling we-” static crackled in her ear and stinging, numbing energy crawled over her skin.

“Tsk tsk tsk…so predictable. You could have at least made it more of a challenge.” That charming southern voice purred. “Captured twice using the same trick. Pathetic.”

“Fuck you.” Ryder grunted and fought the stasis field, her biotics straining against the electrical current flooding her nerves.

Her helmet is abruptly ripped from her head and cold metal digits slide against her neck. “Always so quick to anger.” He mocks. “Are you really that one dimensional?” He sighs. “Anger or lust. It’s always one of the two with you isn’t it?”

Sara strains against her bonds but her strength is quickly fading. Her nerves feel like lead and her mind feels like jelly. “Do you know how boring you are? You have no development at all! Unlike sweet Vetra.” His hot breath tickles her neck, making her shudder. “Sweet, sweet Vetra. The poor girl has gone through so much suffering. All because of you. But it has also changed her. She’s developed… become something more. A good example of character development.” She can almost feel the grin in his voice. “But you.” He chuckles, “You on the other hand haven’t changed. Not one bit. And d’ya know what that makes you? Boring.” He growls into her ear. “And boring characters ruin the story.”

Pain burst in her head, like her implant was turning molten and leaking out of her ears. “Nanites, wonderful things, aren’t they? Don’t worry, there are no lasting side effects. You just won’t be able to use your biotics or your AI until I let you. So, I’m going to let you go-”

 “You let me go and you better be ready for a fight because I’m gonna put you in the ground.” Ryder hisses.

Jaeger steps around her, bending down to come helmet to face with her, sighing. “Still with the anger.” He shakes his head disappointedly. His disguise deactivating at the same time. His armour completely smooth and black. The polarised faceplate featureless. “I look forward to seeing you grow.” He snaps his fingers and a _Titan_ of all things uncloaks behind him. “Now let’s watch the show of an avenging sister and a reprogrammed titan.” He chuckles, boarding his titan, and _flying_ to the top of the reactor.

“It’s my turn now Bitch!” A furious female voice shouted. The stasis field deactivated and Ryder crumpled to the floor. A hard boot collided with her face, knocking her on her back and making her vision black out for a couple seconds. Pain bloomed across her cheeks and ribs as punches and kicks connected. Staggering to her feet, Ryder desperately blocked and parried, trying to get a proper look at her unknown assailant. Her limbs ached from clashing against armour. Her mind slow and foggy, reacting purely out of instinct to avoid getting hit as much as possible. She had some training in hand to hand combat, but her attacker was clearly far more versed in martial arts. Taking repeated blows to the head, Ryder’s actions became slow and uncoordinated. Blood trickled from her nose and her face smarted from multiple cuts and bruises.

“It’s all your fault! She’d still be alive if it wasn’t for you! If you weren’t such a selfish bitch!” The woman screamed. Ryder blinked her disorientation away for a moment, finally seeing the woman in front of her. Chinese. Pretty. Crying. Angry. Danger. Enemy. Simple facts crystallised in Ryder’s punch-drunk brain. Swaying on her feet, Ryder managed a slurred “Who?”

“My sister!” The Asian woman lunged, her fist connecting with Ryder’s cheekbone with a crack. A knee collided with her stomach and bile rose in her throat. Her world spun upside down and the air was knocked from her lungs. Laying there gasping for air as she coughed up blood, Sara called out weakly. “SAM…help.”

“No one is coming to save you. You’re going to die here. You’re going to pay for what you did. A life for a life.” The woman pulled a pistol and aimed it at Ryder’s head.

“Whoever…you are. We’re on… the same side. Don’t do this. Please…” Sara wheezed. The woman hesitated, her gun trembling. “You’re right. This is too easy. You need to suffer.” She snarls, grabbing Ryder and spinning her around. “What…” Sara chokes on her words.

She coughs, hot blood spilling from her lips. She looks down to see several inches of steel sprouting from her chest “Why?” The other woman was silent, twisting the blade deeper into her flesh. A rough kick to the small of her back sent her sprawling. A heavy boot pressed into her back and Sara felt the blade shift. The woman was surely going to remove it and she’d bleed to death. “SAM…”

A bright lance of concentrated lightning screamed past her, the rolling thunder of a titan’s steps following close behind. Bits of metal pelting her skin as the two titans clashed. Earth shattering blows exchanged between towering metal forms. Sword sinking into metal flesh and cutting deep. Bullets puncturing hardened armor, sparks and mechanical fluids leaking and flying all over the place. Ryder dragged herself on the ground with her left arm, crawling desperately to a safer location. Ignoring the dagger sticking out her back and focusing on her breathing which was getting harder by the second. She faintly registered the muted sound of a titan being boarded before she felt her eyelids droop for a second too long.

“Interesting. Most interesting.” Jaeger said from his perch high atop the reactor. “Tick tock Ashley.” He tutted, flicking the switch on his detonator.

The titans slugged it out. Ronin versus Monarch. Cold machine analysis versus human rage-irrationality. Blow by blow, bullet by bullet. Steel meeting steel. A battle of attrition no side was willing to lose.

The Ronin chassis excelled at close quarters combat thus Ashley quickly found herself outmatched by the sheer speed and ferocity at which SAM was able to use his sword. Blocking her bullets and counterattacking. SAM’s broadsword cleaved effortlessly through her shields and soon Ace was complaining about extreme hull damage. Boosting backwards to try and get some breathing space, a quick jab sent her reeling. The broadsword had pierced the protective hatch covering her cockpit, shattering the viewscreens and plunging the cabin into darkness. “Ditch the hatch. I’m eyeballing it.” Ashley calmly instructs Ace while her helmet’s optics come online. The sword had stopped an inch from her chest. If she’d been leaning forward… Ashley shook the thoughts from her head. Now was not the time to think about what ifs. Now was the time to focus on destroying the enemy titan and killing the pathfinder bitch.

“Warning, sustained severe reactor damage.” SAM’s voice was perfectly calm even as his left arm was ripped clean off. In the pilot’s seat on Ashley’s side, the situation wasn’t much better. Ace was also doomed. “Warning, severe reactor damage detected. Our reactor is exposed.” With a mighty kick to SAM’s chest, the weakened armor covering his cockpit tore away. Ramming her rifle into the exposed pilot’s seat, she opened fire, emptying the clip. The Ronin crumpled to the ground. Reduced to nothing more than twisted, sparking metal.

“Protocol 2: Uphold the mission.” SAM fired his Leadwall.

Deafening silence followed.

The Monarch fell.

Jaeger laughed.

=====

** Elora **

Blinking the bright afterimages out of her vision, the first thing she saw when she opened her eyes was a smouldering room. Two huge metal things lay sparking at the side of the room. A figure slouched against one pillar. It was definitely alien. Elora gaped at it, sadness immediately forgotten. She had never seen an alien in real life before. She knew they existed, Vymin kept close tabs on Angaran and Kett activity but stayed mostly hidden. It was how they had survived against the Kett, only losing a few small outposts. They kept to themselves, hiding even from the Angara. They could not trust anybody lest they betray them to the Kett.

The figure was so strange, being so short and having two legs. Even stranger was the fabric that sprouted from its head. From afar, it looked like one piece but when she went closer and touched it, it split into thousands of individual strands. Soft and black, it was like no silk she had ever felt before. The alien’s face looked just that, alien. With two fleshy appendages at the sides of its head and the same black fabric over what Elora could only assume were its eyes. Its features were soft to the touch and the bump on the front of its face twitched when she poked it. Its skin was white, almost as pale as paper and had little bits of metal fused into it. She could see faint scars burned into the ivory skin. This alien was a warrior. Clear from its armor and scars. Elora was puzzled, the voices had brought her here for a reason, but for what she didn’t know.

Tentatively sticking out her tongue, Elora tasted the alien. She immediately regretted her decision. The alien tasted horrible! Salty fear, bitter anger and tangy from an injury. Nudging away the collar of the alien’s strange armour, the little Vymin shrieked in shock. The alien had a perfect outsider’s mark! Impossible! Only the highest-ranking members of the protection corps had the privilege of wearing such a mark. But there it was, clear as day, the double bows made of blue triangles. The symbol of the great protector of balance. It was then that Elora realised why the voices had brought her here. She had to help this alien. Somehow…


	17. Announcement

Holy shit has it already been two months? Well I really hate that this has become my writing schedule and I really apologise from the bottom of my heart but school... and projects(Especially as a film student) and... exams... I mean what can you do? ¯\\_(ツ)_/¯ gotta keep that GPA up and those awards rolling in.  
Anyway, I know some of you have been patiently waiting for the next chapter and I just ask for just a lil'more patience. I'm currently about 30% done with the current chapter. Slow I know but I literally just started writing today after my driving lessons and I need time to buff and polish it to an acceptable standard before I release it to the public. I should (Read;Hope to) be able to update at least two chapters during this term break. I just have to remember to cut the chapters into shorter pieces so I don't have another Frankenstein chapter like the last one.

 

ON TO THE NEXT TOPIC!!!

ARTEMISIA. Anything yall want to see in the upcoming chapters? I feel like some domestic fluff is needed and as I don't have kids and probably won't have any for at least 10 years and only have younger cousins/ my mon's friend's kids/ retellings of my own childhood to go on, what sort of crazy incidents/adventures would you like to see immortalised in text on a screen. ~~Written by an 18 year old with 12% of a plan and no idea how this story got so many views.~~

The chapters will likely be moving back to the semi- one-shot format that this story was initially supposed to follow before my brain stole the controls and went overboard so I should probably be able to weave in just about anything. (I wanna play around with stories following a character growing up. Never written anything like it before so it'l be a fun challenge. Feedback and tips are greatly appreciated ;)

D4

**Author's Note:**

> Please leave a comment and kudos if you enjoyed. Like really... I need friends to talk to. I'm lonely... *Sniff* so lonely.  
> Oh, and as always, stay tuned for more! Even if there is a killer wait between chapters.  
> I'M SORRY!!!!


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